Golden Darkness: To Protect my Friend
by Terah Nightwind
Summary: Terra is fading from history, so Serena travels to the era of time where it is occuring to save her friend and let her be born again. But she can't find her anywhere! Takes place during Golden Darkness
1. Prologue

[Something's gone wrong. Way wrong. Sailor Galaxia is ridding the future of Sailor Earth and there's only one way she can possibly do that. By going to the past. Serena's found out and will stop at nothing to protect her friend. Unfortunatly, Terra has such a long and complicated past, Serena doesn't know where or when to go. Shenron tells her and now Serena has to go 2,000 years in the past to save her friend...]  
  
"Serena, you're crazy!" Gohan yelled after the blonde scout.  
  
"Not crazy Gohan! Determined!" She yelled back. Memories of Terra were fading fast. Gohan didn't remember her and even Vegeta was having a hard time remembering his best friend. Something was happening, and that something was bad. Checking her backpack she made sure she had all seven dragonballs. This was vital. She WOULD get Terra back. There they were. The one through seven. For a moment or two she felt......guilty. That four star ball was Goku's most prized possession. That moment soon passed and she flew faster. Gohan wondered how she could go so fast and realised that she was wearing Chichi's clothing. Since Serena wasn't weighted down, she could go faster than normal. Gohan swore. She had outsmarted him. And that fact terrified Gohan more than facing Cell did...  
  
She flew for a long time, purposly depleting her Ki as far as she safely could. She didn't want them to find her. Goku was angry at her for stealing the dragonballs without a purpose and Vegeta was ready to kill her for stealing the dragon radar. Serenity Tsukino-Son didn't think she'd go back that far. Maybe to a couple years before Terra was born and make sure she was. Then on to either Namek or Earth, depending on which set of Dragonballs were useable and return home if she couldn't get a time key. She thought it was best to play it safe, rather than sorry. Who knew where or when she would go? Well....Pluto did. But Trista was gone. She had to face facts. The only way to know what was going on was to find out herself. She felt her Ki hit the low levels as she slowed down to land. Here was the tough part. She had to look for an open area. Finally spotting one, she landed just as she was ready to collapse.  
  
"Woo...maybe I shouldn't have done that..." She moaned. Groaning and shaking her head, she pulled the seven dragonballs from the back pack and began to arrange them. She was glad she had listened to GOhan that one time. She put them in the circle and stood back. Hoping the boy had a good memory she held her hands out. 'Here goes nothing...' She thought.  
  
"Eternal Dragon Shenron! I summon you! Please arise and grant my wishes!" She shouted. For a few seconds, nothing happened. But as she devised a plan to kill Gohan, the seven glowing balls shot a beam of energy into the darkening sky. She screeched and fell back. She took this remarkably well, considering she'd never seen this before. The sequence ended and the Lunarian Princess was standing before the Eternal Dragon. She was speechless. Shenron, however, wasn't.  
  
"Who awakens me from my slumber?" The booming voice came. Serena gulped and searched for her voice. The dragon went to speak again, but was cut off by Serena.  
  
"Um...Hi....Eternal Dragon....I'm uh...I'm Serenity...or Serena. Yea..." She stammered like an idiot. The red eyes glowed some and if she didn't know better, the blonde would have SWORN that thing...er, dragon...blowed its head a little.  
  
"Princess Serenity of the Ruined Moon Kingdom from a thousand years in the past. How might I serve you?" He asked. The blonde gulped.  
  
"Y...you know me? But um....h...how?" She asked.  
  
"To those of us with magnificent power such as myself, we are informed in mysterious ways. Tell me your two wishes." He told her. Serena picked up the backpack and made a quick double check for everything she needed. Disguise Pen, Transformation Locket, Green Gem, Dragon Radar, Weighted Gi's and casual clothes, unweighted Gi's and Chichi's clothes, a fairly decent sized capsule pack she'd gotten from Bulma filled with essentials, and school work (Which, hopefully she wouldn't have time for.). She had what she needed. She put the bag on her shoulder.  
  
"Uh...okay Shenron. This is...well...a shot in the dark but uh...is it possible for you to give me a....Moon Crystal Key? Y'know, a Time Key?" She asked. He was silent for a few moments as his eyes began to glow. Serena began to fear he'd say 'no'. Pluto didn't just GIVE those away. Rini, her best friend, had to steal one once. That asshole Darien had to order one given to Serena to get home. And the times she'd been to the time gates well...let's not get in to that. (A/N- Going by the Manga there people). Finally he spoke.  
  
"I can. Your wish has been granted." He said. Serena began to breathe again as the small item popped into her hands. But she was curious.  
  
"How?" She asked. 'C'mon Odango number one! Don't screw up! You NEED this wish!'  
  
"With the Guardian of Time dead, I was not able to until the final key was offered." He said to her. Her heart sank. Trista...was really dead. Amara was dead. Michelle was dead. And Hotaru was dead.  
  
"One more question and then a wish. I promise." She assured him. He was losing his patience with the child, yes, but as the Lunarian Princess she DID have the right to know.  
  
"Who...who offered me their time Key?" She asked.  
  
"Terrina-Zephyr Breifs." He told her. Chibi Terra. Chibi Terra had given up her time key? That was...kind.  
  
"Then...I wish to know...well, you see, Terrina...um the one from this time...she's...vanishing from history. So I want to stop that. But I don't know when this was happening. I wish to know where and when this happened. Can....can you Shenron? You're my only hope." She pleaded. The dragon was again quiet as his eyes would glow. Serena could feel the familiar power that belonged to Gohan.  
  
"It occured two thousand years ago. Sailor Galaxia accessed the fourth demension and has sent her warriors to conquer the world Sailor Earth once lived many lives on before being born as a Saiyan warrior." He told her. Serena wanted to ask more questions but said nothing. She had to hurry. Giving a nod, she waved.  
  
"Thank you Shenron!" She called. Eyes glowing, the dragon turned into that yellow beam as the seven balls floated up. He vanished and they shot in different directions. Armed with the information she so deperatly needed, she hurried to get ready. She took the Dragon Radar and sat it on the ground where the dragonballs had been. Feeling her neck for the silver crystal she took the key and held it high over her head. She could see Gohan, Goku, and Vegeta. They weren't happy campers.  
  
"Guardian of Time...let the door of time split the heavens and open for me...I call you by your true name. The all knowing God of Time, the Father of the Guardian...Chronos! I, Princess Serenity of the Moon Kingdom, ask humbly for you to lead me! Protect me! Send me to the path of light and road of time! Take me two thousand years before!" (A/N- Modified but taken from the Manga again. Book 5) She called out. A bright light descended upon her and engulfed her. The Saiyans stopped a few yards away, shielding their eyes. 'I forgot...how bright it was...' That was her last conscious thought. Because the next thing she knew, darkness descended upon her...  
  
~~~2,000 years ago  
  
"I don't know about this..." A male voice said. Serena winced some. What hit her?  
  
"Come on pal. Didn't you SEE what happened?!" A second, more excited voice said. The first voice sighed.  
  
"She fell from a solid rock cave roof..." It said.  
  
"Yea. But that flash completely disabled that...that THING!" He argued.  
  
"Well...yea."  
  
"Come on. She'll be a perfect help! Hey, she's waking up!" Serena brought a bandaged hand to her forehead to rub her throbbing temples.  
  
"Woah...did anyone happen to catch the 'How am I driving? Dial whatever the number is' sticker on that semi that ran me down?" She asked aloud, forgetting where she was or rather when she was supposed to be. She was greeted with odd stares.  
  
"Woah! Um...hi..." She said nervously. She looked around. 'Okay. Either Chronos likes to play sick twisted practical jokes on people or the past was more futureistic than the future...' She thought. Looking about, she tried to sit up. The crystal resting against her chest felt warm. As if it'd been in use recently. One of the two walked out, stretching. She was left with the other one.  
  
"I'm Serena and....hey, where's my bag?!" She yelled. The man lifted it up with some difficulty and plopped it down next to her.  
  
"Um....thanks?" She said uncertainly. He nodded some.  
  
"You wouldn't happen to know where I am, would you?" She asked once more. He nodded, moving some blonde hair from his face. Serena saw he was wearing an eye patch. She winched in sympathy.  
  
"Nice to meet ya Serena. Name's Bart. You're in my hideout in the Aveh Desert." 


	2. Chapter One

[Gee Michi-Chan, thanks! Yea, it is Xenogears. It's where I got the idea for Terra. I think at one point in my story she mentions 'the ship that crashed thousand thousands of years ago'. She's referring to the Eldridge, which she was a passenger on. Pluto was there too trying to see if there was any way to prevent the crash. She realized that Terra was Sailor Earth and gave her the Green Gem to ensure that she's be born again.]  
  
Serena looked around, dazed and confused. Something wasn't right. Wasn't she still on Earth?  
  
"Um...excuse me? Aveh? What's Aveh?" She asked. He just looked at her like she was crazy. Serena knew that look. GOHAN gave her that look. It was the 'Let's-find-a-nice-straight-jacket-and-get-you-a-room-with-pillows-on-the- walls' look. What was especially creepy was he could do it with only one eye. Well.  
  
"Aveh. One of the warring countries? Against Kislev?" He tried again. Serena kept that 'duh....' look on her face. She blinked.  
  
"Um...maybe I...took one to the head..." She mumbled, praying he'd fall for it. He didn't seem to, but he left it at that. Another man walked in to join them. He wore a lot of green, had glasses, tied his long black hair back, and seemed to have a secret behind his eyes. At that point, Bart walked out as well, waving good-bye.  
  
"Ah. I see our lovely young guest has woken up." Citan said politely. Serena blushed furiously at that. No one had ever said that to her. No one who didn't know about her royal bloodline. She grinned some and stammered a thank you.  
  
"Well, I am Doctor Citan Uzuki. What is your name?" Citan asked. She cleared her throat some to talk. She was pretty nervous but decided to speak. She didn't want to be rude.  
  
"S....Serenity Tsukino-Son, but my friends all call me 'Serena'." She explained as the man sat on the beds edge to rewrap the bandages on her head and arm. She winced lightly as she realized what must've happened. She knew she was lucky to have survived that. Thank God for the Silver Crystal. If she hadn't of had it, she might have been dead.  
  
"Well Serena, my friend Fei has said quite a lot about you. When you fell through the gave roof and landed on the enemy Gear, you managed to disable it." He said. She was confused but didn't say anything on it. She had a feeling she'd learn what a Gear was soon enough.  
  
"Um....thanks Mr. Uzuki." She said.  
  
"Please call me Citan." He informed her. She nodded some. He finished wrapping the wounds and got up. Serena got up as well.  
  
"Well, I don't think you'll need to stay in bed as much now. Why not survey they area?" He asked. Giving a small grin, she bowed politely and wandered out, carrying her bag with her. The place was obviously under ground and pretty extensive. So Terra was alive in this time period? Serena wondered why the Scout of the Earth never mentioned this place. She knew about it. So why wasn't anything said? She wandered the corridors for a little while before making it to the mess hall. Her stomach grumbled as she remembered she had dashed from home before having breakfast and ditched school before lunch. She felt ready to vomit from lack of food. (A/N- Hey, I've actually hurled from not eating before)  
  
"Mmm....something smells good." She mumbled. She came to a table where the two men from earlier were sitting. She had to play her cards right and stick with these people. Something about them told her to. She carefully walked up to the two. They were drinking some kind of tea and Serena wanted some. She ran a hand through a blonde pigtail and sat down next to Bart.  
  
"Um...hi again..." She said, a nervous smile on her face. Bart turned and waved back. Serena was relieved to see the 'look' was gone.  
  
"Hey there um...what's your name?" The second man asked. The one behind the small counter gave her a cup and poured her some tea.  
  
"Thanks. Oh. I'm Serenity. Just call me Serena." She said. Bart nodded.  
  
"Well, I told you my name. That's Maison and this's Fei. He saved your life earlier." He informed her. Serena nodded to the two and drank some of the tea in a civilized manner.  
  
"Thanks for saving me then Fei." She thanked, before requesting some more tea. The refill was made and she took another sip.  
  
"Mmm, this is good." She said, pointing at the tea. She drank the rest of it, glad to finally have something in her stomach. She gave the cup back to Maison. Fei looked at her, confused almost.  
  
"How'd you disable that Gear? We almost died." He said. Serena didn't know. She was possibly unconscious at the time. The only explanation was the crystal. It DID feel warm. It must have activated when it sensed danger. Of course, how would she explain that to them? What would she say? 'My magical crystal, a family relic, saved my life because I'm a Princess from the Moon'? HA!  
  
"Well...I'm really strong and I....guess I hit at a certain spot..." She mumbled. Fei blinked. No one was THAT strong.  
  
"Are you...sure?" He asked. She nodded. She WAS really strong, thanks to King Kai. 'King Kai...If I were to go to Otherworld right now he wouldn't even know me...' She thought unhappily. King Kai, Grand Kai, Supreme Kai, not even her own family would know her. For the first time in a long time, Serena felt alone. Lost on a strange world in some part of the galaxy. Her heart felt heavy. She felt like she'd eaten lead. She wanted to cry. She wanted to cry so badly. But she couldn't. The tears came, but she just wiped them away, pretending to have an eyelash stuck in her eye. 'No one here knows me. I can...I can be different.' She thought to herself.  
  
"Well, want a tour of the hideout?" Bart asked. Before Serena could respond, another male walked in. He also had an eyepatch, but on the opposite eye. She winced once more.  
  
"Young master, you're needed for a discussion." He said. Snorting some, the boy got up.  
  
"I'll be right there Sigurd. Sorry Serena." He said before running out with the man. Whining in boredom the sixteen year old slouched over.  
  
"What's wrong?" Fei asked. She opened one eye and looked to him.  
  
"I'm bored....hey! Let's go explore on our own!" She exclaimed suddenly. He looked at her as though she was crazy. One second she was whining and the next she was happy. What kind of person was she? She grabbed his arm and dragged him on with her. They looked around and saw the elevator that led down. Curiosity getting the best of her, Serena led Fei to it.  
  
"But Serena...!" He complained. She would hear nothing of it. The two went down the elevator to a highly technological room. Serena looked at in in awe. 'So these must be Gears...' She thought. So she defeated one of these things? They didn't LOOK that tough. But looks could be deceiving...  
  
"Must be the Gear Bay." Fei muttered. Serena let him go and wandered around. There were really only five different looking ones. The majority were similar in appearance and docked in the center. The four different ones were around the rim. On the beams near them were the names. Serena read each one. 'Weltall...Heimdal...Brigander...and name unknown?' She thought silently, looking to the final one. Shaking her blonde head lightly she spotted a watch one of the workers wore. It was about midnight. No wonder she felt so tired. She noticed that Fei had gone and that left her.  
  
"We never figured out the make or name of that one." A familiar voice came. Serena turned around to see Maison. She turned back to the gear for a moment before yawning.  
  
"Here Miss Serena. I'll show you where you can sleep." He offered. The girl nodded lightly and followed the old man. She was led to the quarters where there was a spare bed. She didn't mind. Getting in bed, she pulled the thin sheet over her, and fell fast asleep...  
  
~~~Three Hours Later...  
  
"GAH!!" She yelped, hearing the alarms blaring. The ground was shaking, and she got a bad feeling. Fei was up as well.  
  
"They say there's a break in!" He shouted to her as he pulled his shirt on. Still in Chichi's clothing, Serena ran out of the room and to the Gear Bay. Fei ran after her, carrying a bag of items. They went down the elevator to see a battle taking place between Brigadier and some other, strange Gears.  
  
"WOAH!" Serena yelped. One of them turned to her and stared. A voice came over a communications.  
  
"What do we have here?" A voice asked. The large robotic hand came at Serena and gripped her. She was yelling and screaming and making a scene. Fei was not immobile at this time as he was boarding Weltall. Citan had boarded Heimdal and joined them. The girl was struggling with all her might. It was no use. She began to power the crystal up.  
  
"Let me GO!" She screeched. Bart looked at the Ether readings his Gear was getting.  
  
"Ether level through the roof!" He shouted over the COM to his companions. The crystal began to shine as she put her hands on the metal. She would try something.  
  
"Cosmic..."  
  
"Shot up 100%!" Bart shouted.  
  
"Moon..."  
  
"250!"  
  
"Power..." She whispered. The energy ran through the arm. The grip weakened and she was dropped. Her eyes drooped as she fell.  
  
"So...am I going to die as well...?" She murmured softly as her strength drained from her and into the crystal. She never found out. She fell unconscious before she hit the ground... 


	3. Chapter Two

[Iiriele starfire, thanks for the reveiw! I'm at the Tower of Babel in the game (I came SO CLOSE to beating it and my memory card wiped) so, most of these events are purely from memory, so bare with me. And xing@fanfiction.net (or Michi-chan or whoever you are! n.n;;) that's a habit of mine. I like making cliffhangers. It keeps you people coming back! I hope you guys reveiw again! They encourage me to keep writing!!) ~~~~~~~  
  
'Hnn.....my head....' She thought. She kept her eyes closed as she tried to figure out where she was. The first thought to run through her head was she was dead again. She heard whispering voices around her. They were familiar. Had that foolish action cost her new friends their lives as well? 'I'm...a failure, aren't I?' She thought once more. She stirred some as she heard one voice shush the others.  
  
"Serena?" Bart's voice asked. Opening her blue eyes she winced as a bright light struck her face. As it was moved away she looked around and noticed she was in another medical room. Bart and Fei were standing over her, worried expressions on their faces. After what had happened, this girl taking out a Gebler Gear alone, they hoped she'd be alive to explain what she did.  
  
"Huh? I'm not dead...?" She asked. Bart smiled.  
  
"Yes! Thank God you're alive! Serena, that was AMAZING! Y...You took that Gear out with ONE Ether attack!" Bart said excitedly. Serena blinked at the word. 'Ether'? No, Serena used Ki and Lunarian Magic. She didn't comment on it though. She rubbed her head and felt her birthmark, the Royal Moon Symbol. Rubbing the spot a few moments, the symbol faded and vanished. It hidden again, she sat up, groaning. She'd suffered multiple injuries. When she'd landed on the ground, the most severe was a large cut on the side of her face. Citan had reassured the others that she'd been retreived and treated quick enough to prevent it from scarring at all.  
  
"Serena, what did you do?" Fei asked. Weltall had picked up the same readings that Bart had and he couldn't make sense out of them either. She placed a hand over the Silver Crystal which was cooling down from that stunt. What could she say? She inhaled and exhaled deeply as she looked to the three.  
  
"It...it's a strange power I have...I don't know why I have it, I just do." She explained to them. Citan looked to her, confused.  
  
"Yes, but something had to amplify that attack. Gebler Gears are massive. No one could have that ammount of strength." He reasoned. She chuckled nervously.  
  
"It...must've been....an electric attack?" She tried. Citan noded at that. It just might've been. The gears could only detect the Ether content. Not the element of it. Bart looked to her once more. He...had something to ask her. He hoped she'd agree.  
  
"Hey...Serena?" He began carefully. She looked at him with an almost curious expression. That was a familiar tone. Gohan used it once when he asked if she could protect Goten. It was the 'favor' tone of voice. She blinked.  
  
"I've um...I've got a favor to ask of you." He said. She nodded some as Citan and Fei listened in. He bit his lower lip and kept talking.  
  
"See, I've got a cousin...her name's Margie...and she's in Bledavik. She's being held prisionar by that bastard Shakkan. So I was wondering if..." He said before Serena raised a hand, indicating him to stop talking. He looked sad when she did so.  
  
"Don't say another word Bart. Of course I'll help you rescue her." She said, smiling a little. Bart's face went happy when heard what she said. He let out a laugh of gratitutde.  
  
"You will?! Thanks Serena! Thanks a lot!!" He shouted. He ran out of the room calling for Sigurd. She looked at the door and spoke to Citan and Fei.  
  
"Well...he's happy..." She said. Both nodded. She looked around and reached into her bag to grab her capsule pack. She opened it up and went through the list of twenty capsules. About six or seven were blanks, or empty capsules. The rest had items like houses and clothing. She came to capsule nine, which was labeled 'Senzu' on the list on the lid. She had a a full bag of Senzu's thanks to Korin. She pulled it out and closed the case, returning it to her bag. She then clicked the top and tossed it to the foot of the bed as she watched it open and the bag popped out. She took one of the hard beans and returned the bag to the capsule before putting it back and returning the case to the backpack. She popped the Senzu into her mouth, chewed a few moments, and swallowed. Within seconds she began to unwrap the bandages. Citan went to stop her, but gasped. The wounds and bone fractures had vanished. Instantly.  
  
"Serena how did you...?" Citan began. She looked to him.  
  
"Senzu." She replied. He blinked.  
  
"'Senzu'?" He repeated.  
  
"Uh-huh. Just one cures you of any injury you've got, gives you back all your energy, AND fills you up!" She said, smiling. She had the large ammount due to the Silver Crystal. They were nessesscary.  
  
"Like Omegasols." Fei said. Not having a CLUE to what an 'Omegasol' was, she nodded some. She didn't want the 'look' to come from either of these two. She got up and stretched, looking around. She turned to the two left with her, as she took her heavy bag.  
  
"C'mon Fei! Let's go explore!" She said cheerfully. Before he could protest, she had gripped his hand and ran out, dragging him behind her. Citan smiled a little as the two ran on. He went to clean the medical area.  
  
"Why do I have to come?" Fei asked. Serena looked around the area, holding his wrist.  
  
"Because I'm not getting lost alone." She told him. He groaned, which earned him a smack to the gut.  
  
"Be quiet!" She warned. They walked on, making it to the gun room. There was a long dining table on one side, a bar next to it, and an open lower area. Serena jumped down, not bothering with the stairs. She landed on her feet, surprising Fei pretty badly. Was she crazy? Did that hit do something worse? She called up to the boy.  
  
"Hey Fei! Come check it out!" She yelled, and ran into one of the rooms. Her things had been moved to this room, indicating it to be hers now. She smiled and sat the bag down on one of the three beds as Fei walked in. The teen smiled happily, thinking of ways to decorate it.  
  
"Wow. Your own quarters." Fei commented. Serena nodded and spun around, her pigtails twirling with her.  
  
"I know! This is GREAT! I don't have my own room...back home..." She said. Home. What would everyone say to her when she got back? She had stolen a Dragon Radar, taken the Dragon Balls, stolen some of Chichi's clothing, attacked Vegeta...if she got home, what would happen? She said 'if' due to the fact, she didn't know who Terra was in this time. Her Power Level could have greatly varied in the short 2,000 years. 'What am I going to do? What CAN I do? They're going to New Namek right now probably to wish me back to this time. No. I can't go back. I have to find the Animates and protect my friend.' She thought, stubbornly. Fei didn't notice the change in voice tone or he didn't bring it up.  
  
"Serena...I'm gonna go talk to Doc and Bart." He said, wandering out. Shaking her head some, she got the 'what-ifs' out. She went to her bag and pulled the capsule pack out and looked for the number that said 'Stuff' on it. Number Five. She pulled it out, clicked the top and tossed it into the center of the room. It opened, a dresser with a mirror and a large clear storage tub popped out in seconds. She began to work, pushing the dresser against the back wall. She opened the tub and in it sat all her posters. She selected a few to put up next to the bed. The Three Lights, Amara and Michelle, and of course a Tenkaichi Budokai poster that had Terra and Omega on it, listing them as the top two competetors in the adult division. She posted them and slid the tub under the bed. She decided to change into her weighted Gi. She grabbed the black boots, white pants and large top and pink undershirt and sash. She picked her short sleeved one this time. It was pretty hot and she didn't like sweating. She stretched her arms and walked out of the room and up the steps. She felt around for Bart's familiar Ki. She found it, above her. Walking up to the elevator, she entered and rode it up. She exited and walked into the Bridge. Sigurd turned to her.  
  
"Hello Miss Serena. The Young Master says you've agreed to rescue Miss Margie." He said. Serena gave a nod and smiled.  
  
"Of course!" She told him.Sigurd smiled back.  
  
"Thank you." He said.  
  
"It's no problem. Really." She admitted. What kind of 'Champion of Justice' would she be if she refused to help people? A bad one. Bart was happily smiling as he gave the order to launch the Yggdrasil.  
  
"Yggdrasil?" Serena asked. He turned to her.  
  
"That's the name of this ship. I'm a Desert Pirate." He admitted to the girl. She merely shrugged. It didn't bother her. Hey, when you're a princess from the Moon who fights evil and becomes queen in a thousand years, not much catches you by surprise. She sat down against the railing on the elevated part of the bridge and watched everyone. It would be a few hours before they got there...  
  
~~~2,000 Years In the Future  
  
"I can't believe what Serena did!" Gohan said, pacing. Serena NEVER did stuff like this. She had never even seen the Dragon Balls before, so why did she suddenly want them? He and his father had just returned from New Namek. Their Dragon Balls would be ready in a couple of weeks, so they had to patiently wait.  
  
"We can even find out her wishs. What happened?" Goku wondered aloud. They had only heard her words just before the pink cloud opened above her and sucked her up.  
  
"She said 'Take me 2,000 years before'. Does that mean she's managed to time travel so far into the past?" Gohan asked. Both were in the woods where Serena had made her wishes.  
  
"Without a time machine, is it possible?" Goku asked. Gohan didn't think so. Besides, the other Trunks had only managed twenty years before his fuel ran low. What HAD she done? As he paced, a bright flash appeared and gently faded away, as a beam of light struck the ground. It came from the Moon. Standing before him and Goku, was a woman with silvery gray hair done up like Serena's. She had the ancient symbol of the Moon on her forehead, and four fairy like wings on her back. She also had a Halo over her head.  
  
"Hello Goku. Hello Gohan." She greeted. She stood, maybe a head taller than Serena. Gohan blinked, alongside his father.  
  
"Who are you?" Goku asked. The woman smiled a little and laughed.  
  
"Forgive me. I suppose I still think people know me after a thousand years. That's right. Serena has never told you what I look like. I am her mother. My name is Queen Serenity." She said. Gohan's jaw dropped. So did his fathers.  
  
"Queen Serenity?! Her MOTHER?!" The teen yelled. She smiled, politely giggling into her hand. The giggle turned into a laugh.  
  
"Yes. I am her mother. Serena has requested a Moon Crystal Key to travel back in time by way of the Road of Time. The Fourth Demension. Usually such travel is forbidden, transgressions punishable by death. But Serena has a mission." Serenity explained. Both Saiyans listened to the queen.  
  
"I was a young child during that time you see. The allience of the planets was not as strong as it is now. Only half the galaxy accepted the peace my mother promised. In fact, we had still been in negotiation with the Planet Vegeta. But I clearly remember when we traveled to that world, the world Serena is on now, I met her on the floating country Shevat. I didn't know who she was, and I only spoke to her for a few moments. "But I still remember it. She kept her hair braided, obviously reccognising the Silver Crystal my Mother held. She dressed like a fighter and I was amazed to see a woman who didn't wear a dress. She smiled at me and asked me my name. When I told her, I didn't notice it, but the smile dulled. I suppose she knew what was happening. She said she had business, said good-bye and went after three men. Serena must remain in the past. She will return in time, I promise." The queen said. Gohan nodded a little.  
  
"At least she's okay..."  
  
~~~2,000 years in the past  
  
"Wow!" Is THIS Bledavik?!" She asked, looking at the marketplace before her eyes. Bart crossed his arms and nodded. On the large hill to the north, she spotted a castle. 'That must be where Margie is. I feel a lot of negative energy in there. Hatred and evil and...ah. There it is.' She thought, looking to one of the windowed rooms to the right. That had to be the room. Of course, it could have been a cat. Serena decided against going for the direct approach. She wanted to be normal here. Dressed in more of Chichi's clothing, she wandered in a few steps before hearing something familiar. A jet. Blinking, she looked up at it. Citan did as well.  
  
"It must be a Gebler jet." He reasoned. Serena nodded. Yea. Probably. Considering she didn't know what 'Gebler' was, she played along well. Looking back and forth at all the shops, Serena felt like she was in heaven. Sure it was a little small compaired to the malls she'd seen (Juuban Shopping District, West City Mall, and Satan City Mall), but they sold things didn't they? She wiped the drool from her mouth,  
  
"You three go rent the room...I'm in love..." She said as she numbly walked forward, into the bazar. She looked around, mostly at the cloth and stuff. The designs were so pretty. She looked through everything, ignore all around her. As she looked around, she noticed some kids. They were around Goten's age and were playing. She went about her business, going from stand to stand. The desert sun was scorching, which made her happy that she wasn't in her long sleeved Gi. As she kept shopping, she felt Citan's Ki head her way. Before the doctor could speak however, she spoke first, never turning his way.  
  
"Yea Citan?" She asked him. He looked amazed. It was to noisey for her to have heard him. So how on earth did she know he was coming her way? Oh well. Best not to ask now. They had more urgent business to tend to.  
  
"Serena, we are going to take a look about the city. Will you accompany us?" He asked her. She looked up to him as she sat the cloth she had been looking at down. She gave him a light smile.  
  
"Sure thing. This place is a lot of fun. I could stay here forever just to shop!" She exclaimed. He smiled at her. Serena was an odd girl, that was for sure. But with all that Ether and Chi inside her (Chi is just another word for Ki, people), she would be invaluable to the plan they'd just created. She walked away from the stand to join the three men.  
  
"Okay Serena. We need to sneak into the castle, so we're gonna find a way in." Bart whispered to her. She nodded a little. She could've gotten them in. Easily. But she wanted to see what they had in mind. She gave a nod and went with them, as they toured the town. They walked from building to building, but could find no special entrance. That is, until they came to the restraunt with the fish tank. Serena was watching the fish when she spotted something. It was a brief glimpse, a tiny flash of light. She took the Silver Crystal and held it at an angle, getting the rainbow light to strike that spot as it acted as a prisim. There. Again. The red was reflected for an instant as she pulled her hand away. She turned and went to find Bart.  
  
"Bart." She called. He looked over at her, wondering if she found something.  
  
"Bart. Is there some kind of...um...waterway under the city?" She asked, thinking she saw a door. He went to say no, but thinking again he nodded.  
  
"You know what? There is. C'mon. Let's get the others and go find the entrance." He told her. Both went to find Fei and Citan.  
  
~~~ An Hour Later  
  
"So this is the waterway?" Fei asked, kneeling down next to locked gate that kept them out. Bart nodded and looked around, making sure there weren't any soldiers nearby. They had come from nortern Bledavik where they found out a fighting tournament was going to be held tomorrow. Citan had suggested that Fei sign up and Serena had insisted that she had to sign up too. The idea was that they could both draw it out and if one was elimenated, there would be one more. After reluctantly agreeing (Serena said she could disguise herself) she signed up for tomorrow. Sailor Moon would make her appearence. She would not have her wings though, she decided that already.  
  
"Yea, but the man dropped the key in there so no one could get in." He said. There went that plan. Groaning in defeat, the three men got up to leave, but Serena stayed behind. The lock was rusted, and there was an injury risk. So she couldn't manually break it. The crystal used to much energy and would produce a blinding flash. Cosmic Moon Power was out of the question. Untieing her sash, which was heavily weighted, she put the lock into it. She folded it in half, the folded it again until she heard the lock break from sheer strain. Opening the cloth, she dumped the remains out and tied it back around her waist, this time as a belt. She got up and ran after them.  
  
"Guys!" She called out. Fei turned to her.  
  
"Yea Serena?" He asked. She caught up to them and smiled, winking.  
  
"The lock's not a problem anymore!" She cheerfully told them. Skeptical, Bart went back to see. He came back, holding the remains of the lock.  
  
"She's right..." He said. Fei and Citan stared. Before questions were asked, Serena decided to change to topic.  
  
"So! The compitition isn't 'til tomorrow so...let's rest!" She said, running to the inn and to the room. They eventually followed.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
I could go on, but this is almost 6 pages right now. Okay, I want your opinion now. I have a few ideas on where Terra should be, but I don't know which to use. Should she be a Good Guy or a Villian? E-Mail me at Kyra Mizuno@aol.com with your ideas. If I don't get enough, I'll go with my first idea in the next chapter. I'll give you guys a week, before I post it, okay? Thanks! 


	4. Chapter Three

[One vote? One? ONE?! YOU PEOPLE ARE PATHETIC! Oh well. The vote asked for Terra to be good, so she'll be good. That means she won't be fetured until later in the story. Okay. Thanks for the vote. ::Grumbles::]  
  
~~~~~  
  
It could work. They could make it work. It was so simple. They'd gone over it a few times for the sake of memorizing it. Fei and Serena (Serena being in the 'Sailor Moon' disguise of hers) would enter the tournament. They'd keep it going as long as they could, until Bart had enough time to be in. Serena would fight until she felt that he was completely in, then plow her way through. She looked to the three.  
  
"I'll transform now." She warned them. They didn't know what she meant. 'Transform now'? What did that mean? Serena took a few steps away to have some room. The wings would appear during transformation. She held her hand up for the sake of show. She didn't need her locket. The Crystal was the key. It 'bloomed' like a flower.  
  
"Eternal, Transform!" She called. As soon as she transformed, she clasped her hands as if in prayer and concentraited. The wings exploded into pure white feathers that vanished as they hit the ground. They were amazed. Shocked and speechless.  
  
"How did you...?" Bart stammered. Citan looked at the mark on her for a moment, but didn't call attention to it. He was more interested in what she had just done.  
  
"Is this...'Sailor Moon'?" The doctor asked. Serena nodded a little. She placed her hand over the Silver Crystal which was in place of the locket. She gave a smile and stretched. She was thankful for not having those heavy 400lbs each wings.  
  
"Yep! Man it feels good to get that weight off my back. How much did King Kai say my wings weighed? fifteen...no sixteen. Sixteen hundred pounds." She told them. Citan looked at her as if she was crazy. He didn't believe that, one bit.  
  
"That's impossible. You shouldn't lie like that." He told her. Giving a serious glance to him, she lifted her Gi top up and then pointed to the gate to the water way.  
  
"Fei. Go punch it." She ordered. He looked confused. Why did she want him to punch it?  
  
"Serena, I'm not going to--" He started. Serena began to act like Terra.  
  
"Punch it, jump on it, I don't care WHAT. Just DO something to it!" She yelled. Cringing at her words, the martial artist/painter walked over and hit the gate as hard as he could. But as they expected, nothing happened. Serena lightly smirked and walked over, crumpling the white cloth up. Citan looked at her. If Fei couldn't do a thing, then what could a peice of cloth do? Serena tossed it up a few inches and watched it drop like a boulder. It hit the metal which didn't give an ounce of resistance. It broke away instantly. Serena reached down and grabbed the top before it could keep falling. She didn't want to lose it. This was her only white top. She had two tops. This and a pink one. (The Gi colors alternate. She has in white: A top, pants, a belt, a short sleeved and a long sleeved undershirt. The same in Pink)  
  
"Told ya so. I used my belt to crush the lock yesterday." She informed them. But before questioning could begin, she once more changed the subject. Grabbing Fei once more by the arm, she dragged him off.  
  
"We are NOT going to be late! This is the first tournament I am going to FINISH!" She said, referring to the incident at the Tenkaichi Budokai when Mars shot her with a Flame Sniper and killed her. She had left right after her match with Amara. She wanted to go against Fei. He seemed reasonably strong for someone who hadn't gone through the same training that the Moon Princess had. Both ran for Northern Bledavik, followed by Citan, leaving Bart at the Waterway.  
  
~~~Northern Bledavik  
  
Citan remained outside as Fei and Sailor Moon went to the contestant area. Anger filled the girl as she was jeered at by the contestants. She was the only girl fighting.  
  
"They're going down..." She growled. Starting with the one who really reminded Serena of Hercule Satan. Thought he was strong, favorite of the crowd, and ego the size of Asia. He went first. Serena took a look around as Fei went inside. Feeling a strong evil not to far off, Serena looked up. Sitting there were three people. One must of been that guy Shakkan that Bart had told her about. There were two men and one woman. The woman was looking at her, with a stare that sent shivers up Serena's spine. Turning, she walked on. About that time the announcer called Serena up against that green haired guy. Big Joe.  
  
"Well, atleast I don't have to wait to kick his ass..." She muttered to herself. Both entered the arena. Giving a quick Power Level check, Serena decided he was as strong as Hercule Satan, if not weaker. But she had to draw this out. Take a beating then take him down. Lower that ego a few sizes. 'I'm about to ruin his life, and I'm enojoying it. Oh God, I'm turning into Vegeta!' She franticly thought. The announcer told them to fight and he went right for her. A sharp blow to the gut knocked her off her feet.  
  
"Oof!" She said, as the wind was knocked from her lungs. She fell back, and was punched again, breaking the cloth, bruing her, and forcing her to vomit up blood. She'd never had that happen before. Sure, she'd vomited up blood, but that was when she was little and had her tonsils removed. She got up and moved to punch him, pretending to be weak. She was kicked and thrown back. She felt Bart swim through the waterway as he made his way to the castle. A punch to the jaw sent her flying back to the ring edge. He had no Ki what so ever. (Well, he DOES *Everyone has it* but it doesn't mean he can USE it!) No real power. No nothing. Wait for it. Wait for it...  
  
"Not so fast!" Serena called out, getting up. The guy was getting ready to finish her, when she called out. Bart was in the castle, so Serena could end this round. She only intended to stall for that small ammount of time. If there would be a fight inside, she wanted to tournament to be over with so that she could be there for it. The idiot looked confused. This little girl had just taken a beating from him, and she was still standing. Any normal person should have been down for the count, or dead by now. But not Serena. No. She didn't give up so easily any more. After what she had gone through, her boyfriend trying to kill her, her friends abadoning her, her new family being killed off one by one, and her best friend leaving, she learned to be strong. That not everyone would be there forever. Terra had learned that lesson as a small child and now it was Serena's turn.  
  
"I don't think so! I'm not some little girl. I'm not a child. I'm your worst nightmare. I've fought an evil that came from the past, I've defeated aliens who have tried to steal my energy, I defeated those from the future, I helped stop the world from being taken over by the deafining silence, I defeated a queen who cursed my family line to doom, and now I'm stopping a villian who want to cover the world in darkness! I'm millions of times stronger than you are.  
  
"I won't be defeated, I cannot lose! For love and justice, I'm the Sailor Suited warrior of the New White Moon. Eternal Sailor Moon, and in the name of the Moon, I will punish you for what you did!" She called out, lapsing into the familiar speech that she had been using since day one. Drawing her weapon, she swung it into his gut with most of her strength. She'd show them all. This guy was the favorite of the crowd, the one expected to win. She'd prove to them what a wimp he really was. Maybe stalling was the best idea. With all that damage, most of her strength had actually depleted. But she had enough. The Eternal Tier caught his gut and threw him into a wall outside the ring. He was out cold. Citan stared at the girl in disbelief as she made her way down, popping a Senzu into her mouth.  
  
"Serena, how'd you do that?" Fei asked. She looked at him and said nothing. Because at that time, Fei was up against a boy, younger than Serena, by nearly a decade. The kid glared at Fei like he knew and hated him. Serena knew Fei would win. It didn't take a power check to confirm her suspicions. It wouldn't have been unremarkable at best. So Sailor Moon decided to see who she'd be up against next. She came to the board and looked up at it. There was a familiar name.  
  
"Wiseman...?" She wondered aloud. The Wiseman she knew had been defeated by combining her Silver Crystal with Rini's. She still remembered that battle to this day. She turned to see Fei walk up to her.  
  
"Hi Fei." She greeted, turning back to the board. He was drinking down an Aquasol to replenish his health. Serena stretched a little as she looked around for anyone who might've been this 'Wiseman' she was against next. She saw no one.  
  
"Fei? Do you know who Wiseman is?" She asked. He shook his head. The crystal on her front 'bow' glowed a little, the weights vanishing. Because she couldn't size her opponit up, she wanted to make sure if she were up against a Vegeta-like fighter she'd be ready. She walked around a bit looking over the fighters, trying to find Wiseman. What was she up against? How strong was he? Should she worry or not? She could feel the three from earlier staring at her. It was that feeling you got when someone was watching you. The woman was creeping her out the most for some reason. She didn't visably acknowledge their stares, but mentally, she was screaming at them, much like Chichi would scream at Goku or Bulma to Vegeta. Or...was it the way Chichi screamed like Serena or...?  
  
"I'm confused..." She muttered, sitting down on a small chair. It wasn't saying much, Serena was ALWAYS confused. But that was her nature. Not long after she and Wiseman were called to the ring. Getting up, she calmly walked to the ring, catching a glimpse of a man in a cloak. She blinked some.  
  
"Creepy..." She said, realising how he somewhat resembled the Wiseman she'd defeated or was going to defeat rather. He looked her over, though she couldn't tell because of the mask on his face.  
  
"Aren't you a little weak to be fighting?" He asked. Serena growled lowly at that remark. The command to fight had been given and she went straight for him, using the After Image technique Goku and King Kai had taught her. The image flew at him, but before it could kick, she appeared and punched instead. However, she went right through him! She stopped and turned, eyes wide. Had he moved? He had to have! But he was in the same spot. No. He did. Serena noticed the small pebbles and sand grains had been shuffled around his feet. He'd just moved to quickly. (My explination for why you can't do damage to him) Sailor Moon jumped into the air and threw a Ki ball at him. Again, a miss. The audience was booing loudly at this. Landing, She began to punch and kick as hard and fast as she could, but he dodged easily. He landed on the opposit side of her, and said something.  
  
"Is that all the power you've got?" He asked. Before she could respond, he left.  
  
"HEY! GET BACK HERE! I HAVEN'T KICKED YOUR ASS YET!!" She screamed at him. It was no use. Wiseman had left. Serena groaned and looked to the edge of the ring as Fei entered. They were the last two contestants who hadn't been knocked out yet. Both went into fighting positions. The command to fight was gived and they both dashed after each other...  
  
~~~~~Inside the Castle  
  
Bart walked inside quickly after getitng his clothes as dry as he could. Didn't want that bastard Shakkan or his guards having a nice trail to follow, now did he? He looked around, realising how much of this place was so unfamiliar to him. He hadn't been here in years. The last time was when he was a child. Cameras were almost everywhere, making the prince sick to his stomach. Uncurling his whip, he struck at one of the cameras, taking it out. He placed the whip in the holder and ran down that hall, coming to a door that led to the courtyard. He went through it, and could hear the fighting not to far away. Serena and Fei were doing good as distractions Most of the guards were caught up in the fighting, giving him oppertunity to get into another room to wait a few momemnts. He quietly shut the door behind him and sighed, looking around. It was a library, shelves stacked high with books. However, oddly enough, there was a cat in there. Bart walked over to it,and knelt down to pet it, scratching it behind the ears. The feline began to purr loudly.  
  
"Hey....like that, huh?" He asked. The cat meowed and rubbed against his legs in an affectionate way. BArt gave a small laugh, and kept petting it...  
  
~~~~~With Fei and Serena  
  
"HA!" A roundhouse kick to his gut sent Fei to the rings edge. He jumped back up and ran at her, using one of his low deathblows, saving up for a nice combo against her. She did a back handspring to dodge the attack, and swiped her leg to get him to lose balance. He jumped over her leg, and a kick to the jaw sent her flying back as well. She jumped up and threw a Ki ball at him. He was hit, but only stumbled. Serena was quite impressed with the artist, but wondered why she felt two powerlevels in him. She shrugged it off. She herself had two. Serena/Sailor Moon and Princess Serenity. She didn't question it with 'why', she accepted it. Fei was unique. Her Heart Moon Rod appeared in her hands and she twirled it around.  
  
"Rainbow Moon Heart Ache!" She shouted. (If the others can use all of their attacks in Super form, then Serena can use all of hers in Eternal) But before the attack could hit Fei, both the attack and Serena faultered. Her blue eyes were wide as she turned to the castle. No. It...it wasn't possible...no. No!  
  
"Copper?"  
  
~~~~~  
  
Aww......this isn't as long as I'd have liked (It's only four pages, Sorry!!!!!), but when I decided on that right at the end, I decided to keep true to my habit of cliffies (Cliffhangers) and stop there. Like I said, Galaxia and the Animates are in the past people. Okay. REVEIW! 


	5. Chapter Four

[You people are lucky. See, as I was working on this my computer craped out on me. I rebooted and came back to this story and guess what? IT WAS DELETED! JUST LIKE MY MEMORY CARD DID! IT JUST ISN'T FAIR!!! But I found a MIDI of 'One who bares fangs at God' and that's my inspiration music. You can thank it for getting this chapter re-written! That and Kyia! THANK YOU!! See, about an hour ago (For now) the story was wiped a second time. Now I was ready to just give up and discontinue the story. I explained the prob to Kyia and she suggested to look in the recycle bin. Mom installed Norton on the computer and you can unerase ANYTHING with it so I typed in one of the lines and IT CAME BACK!!!! YAY!!!]  
  
~~~~~  
  
"Damn..." Bart huffed as he stood against the wall. He'd barely escaped becoming a target board for the guards. This was so...alien to him. This whole place was so different that what his limited memory could provide. Really, he knew so little about this place to begin with that he was lucky to not have gotten lost yet. The cat in his arms meowed slightly as it watched him. He peered around the corner to make sure there were no guards coming his way, and when the coast was clear, he ran. The cat dug its claws into him. Not deep enough to hit the skin, but enough to get a good grip on his clothing since he only had one arm around it. His right hand was resting on his whip. He continued down the hall at a pretty good pace until he rounded the final corner. Or o he thought. He slammed, face first, into a wall. Shaking his head, Bart looked around. This wall wan't supposed to be here! He looked around, wondering if he'd taken a wrong turn somewhere. No way. He'd been planning this raid for months! The castle was just different. Groaning, he slumped against the wall in defeat.  
  
"Sorry kitty..." He said to the cat. The cat rubbed against his legs and meowed. Realising he wasn't going to go anwhere, it jumped into his lap and dug through his item pouch. Before Bart could do anything, the cat ran off, carrying his Gear Launcher in its mouth! In a flash he was on his feet and running after it.  
  
"Stop theif!" He called...  
  
~With Serena, Fei, and Citan...  
  
"This must be the Gebler HQ in Aveh..." Citan remarked. Fei nodded a little while Serena was lost. She did, however, manage to surpress a 'What the hell?' remark. She was to busy looking around at all the artwork and such. One painting caught her attention. It was a painting of the castle and reminded her somewhat of a painting she had seen on the Moon. She didn't bring attention to it, considering it a coiencidence. She kept walking with the others, still looking around. Fei spoke.  
  
"Y'know Doc, Bart could already be out of here. One of us should go back to check." He reasoned. Citan nodded. Fei was probably right. He turned to ask Serena to go check the Yggdrasil but saw she seemed to be concentraiting on something since she had her eyes closed. She tilted her head slightly before her eyes shot open. She passed her older companions before running down the hall. She had caught Bart's Ki and felt it moving rather quickly. She had assumed he was running from something and decided he might need help. Since she wasn't wearing her heavy weights she was moving extremely fast and had to slow to a jog so Fei and Citan could still see her. Well, to her it was a jog. To them is was a dead run.  
  
"Serena!" Fei called. She skidded around a corner and went on. Citan called after Fei.  
  
"Fei! I suspect she knows where Bart is!" He told the younger man. Fei looked back for a second before returnng his gaze to the running girl.  
  
"What are you talking about Doc?" He called back.  
  
"Yesterday when she was in the market I came upon her from behind. She could not have heard me yet she knew I was there and since I was facing the sun she didn't see my shadow! I do not understand it but she has the ability to locate people!" He explained, recalling the incident from yesterday. He had been baffled by it. Serena stopped at a fork in the path and closed her eyes to concentrait again. Which path? Which path to take? She felt for his Ki. A fight? That woman from earlier. She didn't seem like the...wait a second, she wasn't fighting. So who was Bart fighting? Serena couldn't feel any other Ki. Fear shot through her as she took the left path. Fei went to grab her but had gotten there to late. He only grabbed air. She skidded another corner and came upon a wall. Fei stopped suddenly causing Citan to slam into him. Fei turned to Citan with an 'Oh-really?' look on his face. Serena walked to the wall and put her hand on it.  
  
"Serena...?" Citan asked. With a yell, Serena spun and kicked it down. Fei jumped back as she did so. The smoke began to clear and the two saw Serena fighting the man Bart had been in combat with. Fei thought he looked somewhat familiar but just couldn't place the name with the face. Citan, however, knew him quite well. Due to that fact he forced Fei to avoid the battle while they hid in the remainined corner.  
  
"Hm? A girl?" The man asked, laughing slightly. Serena turned red and Bart could SWEAR he saw steam pouring out of her ears.  
  
"Girl? GIRL?! THAT'S IT!!!" She screamed. Pulling off her boot she hurled it at him. It was weighted down quite heavily and when it hit, his hand went for his nose. Blood was gushing out. The woman, who had been creeping the scout of the Moon out, knelt down next to him. Retreiving the boot, Serena also lifted the new girl and her...toy up.  
  
"Let's go!" She shouted. She kicked a wall the lead outside down (With her bare foot!) and jumped out. Blinking, the three men jumped after her. Serena debated over if she should have flown or not. No, she wanted that to stay secret for now. She ran. The girl she was carrying squeezed her eyes shut as the wind blew past her. When they got to South Bledavik, Serena took to jumping across rooftops until she landed on the soft sand outside. One more jump let her land ontop of the Yggdrasil which was about 300 yards away. As she landed, she came close to falling, but grabbed a rail to balance herself. Sighing in releif, she sat the girl down and smiled at her.  
  
"Heya." She greeted, kneeling down. The girl looked up at her curiously.  
  
"Hi...are you Barty's friend?" She asked. Serena kept smiling and nodded.  
  
"Uh-huh. My name is Serenity Tsukino-Son. But call me Serena. You must be Margie." She said. Margie nodded.  
  
"Nice to meet you Serena." The girl politely said. Serena walked to the hatch where she opened it for the girl. Bart, Fei, and Citan were on their way but seemed kind of far off. Oh well, Serena didn't worry. If a fight started, she'd show up. Hopping in after Margie, the Lunarian left her with Sigurd and walked to the Gun Room. Again she jumped down to the bottom and spotted a vending machine.  
  
"Ooh!" She squaled happily. Placing some coins in it, she selected a desert and walked back into her room, eating it. Stifling a yawn she down the sweet and stretched. She began to change clothes, out of Chichi's and into her own. She wanted to be at Wiseman's strength and speed level because she wasn't certain what she'd be up against. And Fei's second powerlevel was higher than her own. Hell, it was at Vegeta's level! Finding her Gi with King Kai's symbol on it, she put her all pink outfit on. Now the boys were running. Odd. Bu not distressing. Stretching lightly to warm up, she walked towards the Gear Bay. She'd seen it once and decided it was a potential training ground, provided that she didn't use Ki. She moved down to the lower area which was devoid of people, luckily. There she began her warm up procedures and such, making sure to keep her power down. She wished she had a sparring partner, but the only ones who could possibly match her were either to weak or just hadn't been born yet. Throwing a punch and then a kick she did a few backflips. A roundhouse kick was followed by a series of punches which led to another back flip. She finally felt the three familiar powerlevels and walked back up the staircase to wait for them to enter. Weltall was first to enter and dock, Heimdal second and Brigander last. For a few good moments, no one exited the large robots as the engines and such cooled off. Finally Fei hopped out of his Gear.  
  
"Hey Fei." Serena greeted, running a towel over her face. He greeted her and turned to see his companions coming up to them. Stretching, Serena hadn't even worked out enough to require a cool down. She looked to Bart was was looking around for Margie.  
  
"Relax Bart. Your little 'girlfriend' is with Sigurd." She teased. He grew red and grit his teeth lightly, giving her a slight glare with his one eye.  
  
"She's not my girlfriend. She's my cousin." He explained. Serena blinked lightly.  
  
"Cousin? Ew." She told him, before winking and walking out. She laughed as she did so and waved good-bye without turning around. She exited the bay and Citan 'hm'ed. Both younger men looked to the doctor.  
  
"Doc? Something up?" Fei asked.  
  
"Yea Citan. Something wrong?" Bart asked as well. Citan had noted that unlike earlier she did not have that strange mark on her forehead and before that strange incident (Her transformation) she didn't have it as well. But he wanted to keep his suspicions to himself for now. Perhaps Serena had a reason to hide it from them. It might have been an 'identifying mark' that a military group, that Gebler for example, was using to track her.  
  
"Hm? Oh, it is nothing Fei. Come, let us see Miss Margie." He directed. Bart and Fei shrugged to each other and moved towards the doors leading out. The man standing guard next to the door directed them to the room right next to him and indicated it as Margie's room. As he walked in, Bart carefully reached into his item pouch and lifted the cat from earlier out to hand it to his cousin. He'd slipped it in there earlier and carried it with him the entire time. Margie squealed happily and sat that cat down and began to pet it.  
  
"Thanks Barty!" She said. Scratching the back of his head, Bart gave a soft reply.  
  
"What's her name?" The girl asked again. Bart shrugged again. He didn't know. He'd assumed it'd been a stray that had wandered into the castle or something. That had been known to happen before.  
  
"I dunno. I just keep calling her 'Kitty'." He said, kneeling down to scratch the feline's ears. Kitty purred and meowed before cuddling with Margie. Bart stood and left the room to go to the Gun Room, wanting to thank Serena for her help. Fei went after him and Citan stayed behind for now. Catching up with the pirate slash prince, Fei followed behind as they entered the Gun Room to see Serena sitting at the bar, drinking something. They began to walk to her, but halfway there she spoke first.  
  
"Hey Fei. Hey Bart." She said without turning around, astounding both. How the hell did she know it was them? A guess? No. Citan said she knew it was him yesterday and earlier she navigated a difficult and unfamiliar castle to find Bart in seconds. This was creeping Fei out. Badly. What WAS she?  
  
"Hi Serena." Fei said as he took to a table. Bart plopped into the seat next to the girl and held his hand out. Eyeing him slightly she slowly reached out as well to shake his hand.  
  
"Um..." She began.  
  
"I wanted to...say thanks for helping me rescue my cousin." He said. Serena shrugged and returned to her soft drink.  
  
"No problem. You didn't stand a chance against that guy anyway." She said, that last part half uunder her breath. Bart looked at her, wondering what she was implying. Serena figured he was an android of some kind since he didn't have a powerlevel and thus she couldn't see how strong he was. That was always a big disadvantage. Shrugging it off, he leaned over the counter for a soda of his own.  
  
"That was kinda fun." She admitted with a grin on her face. Bart gulped his drink down in seconds while nodding. He finished, burped, excused himself and tossed the can into the trash with a fairly decent aim. Serena hopped up and went over to the door.  
  
"So where are we heading next?" She asked. Both boys got up and walked over to her. Serena noticed that that second powerlevel in Fei had greatly dropped. It was at a massive high when she fought and dropped soon after. She got a little edgy really. Back when she fought the Death Busters, though she wasn't able to read Ki or anything, she had FELT a vague wisp of another being inside of Hotaru. Unfortunatly, it wasn't enough for her to realise at all and as she looked back on those days, she could remember it. Was Fei like Hotaru in some way? Did he...have another person inside of him?  
  
"We're gonna head for Nisan, the Holy capital." Bart said as he walked out. Serena and Fei followed behind him and went to the elevator.  
  
"Nisan?" Serena asked and looked to Fei. He had no clue either. Bart grinned some.  
  
"It's where I lived after Shakan took over my home." He explained. Fei had known about Bart being a prince, but this was new news for Serena.  
  
"So...you're a pirate and a prince?" She asked. Never, even in all the years she knew she would live, had she thought she'd ever come across someone like her. Maybe she should tell them. Maybe she should let them know exactly who she was. Princess Serenity of the Moon, and soon to be Neo Queen Serenity of the future Earth. Nah.  
  
"Yea. Guess I shoulda told you earlier." He admitted, scratching the back of his head again. The elevator stopped and let them off. Moving to the door for the bridge, Bart stopped. There was that strange pink and white...whatever-the-hell-it-was. He groaned but Serena squealed. She knelt down to lift it up.  
  
"Oh! This is so CUTE!" She said happily, hugging it like she hugged her big stuffed rabbit she couldn't sleep without. However, unlike her big stuffed rabbit, it spoke.  
  
"Owchu! Please let me go!" It said. Serena yelped and dropped it, before dashing behind the two boys. Giving a blink, Bart kneeled down to inspect it while Fei begged Serena to stop crushing his arm. Bart poked it, getting the thing to giggle.  
  
"What are you?" He asked.  
  
"Nice chu meet chu! I'm ChuChu!" It squeaked. Serena smiled again.  
  
"You must be Margie's. Fei, take ChuChu to Margie." She ordered, ploping the pink ball of fuzz into his hands. Fei was about to protest when she shoved him into the elevator. Bart chuckled lightly at that and entered the bridge to see Sigurd speaking to a novince piolet. Serena walked to her usual spot and sat down, yawning lightly. Bart and Sigurd spoke for a little while before the order to launch the Yggdrasil was finally given. Not a moment too soon, Serena was about to go to sleep. The ship shook and began to move. Leaning back, Serena yawned. Sigurd said about three hours right? That was just enough time for a nice...long...nap...  
  
~~~~~  
  
Well thanks for the reveiws people. Y'know, I've been thinking about pairing Serena up with someone, but decided against it. Now I think I might do it. Of course, I won't say. You'll have to suffer! This's short, yes but kinda think of it like a continuation of the previous chapter and group them togather. So it'll be 8 pages instead of four! How's that? 


	6. Chapter Five

"...rena? Serena?" Came the familiar voice, gently calling her voice out. Serenity Tsukino-Son slowly opened her blue eyes to look around. She was back on the Yggdrasil? What happened to that castle she saw? Was that all a dream? It was a pretty real dream to her. Bart kneeled over her, smiling some. The Yggdrasil had stopped shaking so Serena had assumed that they must have finally arrived in Nisan, or where ever the hell they were going. Stretching, the girl smiled back and used him as a lever to push herself up with. The prince dusted himself off and straightened his eyepatch.  
  
"Hey Bart...I had a nice cat nap." Serena yawned. Bart grinned and patted her on the back.  
  
"A LONG cat nap. You've been asleep for nearly four hours." He told her. Serena blushed a little and scratched her cheek. She did have a tendency to sleep like a log. And according to Gohan she also had a tendency to saw them. Her eyes dimed somewhat at that thought, a glazed look coming across her face and eyes at the thought of foster brother. She'd never understand why she did what she did. They had trusted her. They thought she could do no wrong. And how did she repay them for all their kindness? She lied to them, she stole the Dragon Balls, she attacked Vegeta, and she stole clothing. Would they forgive her for what she did? She hoped so. She walked out of the bridge and to the hatch followed by Bart who was watching her closely. He had noticed her look and wondered what went on inside her head, she always looked a little depressed. And she didn't carry it well. He climbed up the hatch, followed by her.  
  
"This is the entrance to Nisan. I grew up here." He explained. Serena nodded and walked on, followed by Bart. She noticed a nun, really similar to the Sisters at Raye's school, who was speaking to Sigurd. Curiousity killed the cat, so Serena walked over, holding back a yawn.  
  
"Hi Sigurd." She greeted with a smile. Sigurd looked at her and nodded in acknowledgement.  
  
"Hello Serena. Sister, this is Serena. She is the one who rescued Miss Margie from Aveh." He explained. Serena waved a little as the Sister thanked her.  
  
"We are preparing for a stratagey meeting right now, so you can go exploring with Young Master if you want to." Sigurd told her. That was all the Princess needed to hear. Grabbing her companion's arm, the two went to explore. Well, Serena was exploring and Bart was pointing things out.  
  
"Wow, this is so beautiful!" She said as she looked at all the plant-life and birds and such. She looked back to Bart, and let something slip up.  
  
"Back on the Moon, the dome was NOTHING like this---" She began before slapping a hand over her mouth. Bart blinked. He heard something, he knew he did.  
  
"What...did you just say?" He asked. Serena blushed a crimson red before running off. Bart tried to go after her, but in seconds she was gone. What did she mean by 'back on the Moon'? He shook his head and continued the search for her. Serena was upset with what she had said. This wasn't a question of trusting them or not. No, she trusted them with her life. She just didn't want them acting like the girls, who treated her like an object, rather than a person. With a leap, she was in the air and falling towards a large crystal lake. She stopped herself inches from the water before floating up and landing right outside the cathedrial door. She decided she needed a few moments without the others nearby so she let her hair down and became Princess Serenity again. Folding her wings in, she entered the building. Walking towards the front where seats were supposed to be, she kneeled down and clasped her hands. A few of the Sisters noticed her wings and whispering began. They were wondering if she was an angel, though many were to nervous to ask. Serenity just smiled. So her royal blood wasn't obvious. That was a major releif for her. She remained in prayer, but her mind kept returning to her friends. Mostly to something she once heard Terra say when they fought the circus. No one else heard it, but it was said to her other self. 'I'd rather die a cowards death a thousand times before I let the darkness overpower me.' Terra was dead now. So Serena had to wonder...did Terra die...the cowards death?  
  
"What is the 'Cowards Death'?" She whispered. Vegeta spoke of it. A coward took their own life rather than die in a battle. That was the Saiyan philosphy at least. Terra was a full blood Saiyan, so did she believe in that? If she did, how did she take her own life while keeping her Star Seed out of Galaxia's hands? 'Where are you Terra? Where are you in this time? Why can't I feel you?' She thought. Serena now truly felt alone in this new world. Alone and afraid, like a small child seperated from its parents in a crowded mall. After a while, Serenity got up and looked to the Sisters, one by one before setting her gaze of Margie and Kitty. Smiling a little, she turned and walked outside as she began to put her hair up again. As soon as she left, another leap took her back to the city as she changed back to plain old Serena. A graceful land was executed as she noticed Fei walk out of a building. He didn't see her land but he did notice her straighten herself up.  
  
"Hi Serena." He greeted. She waved and walked over to him, smoothing down her shirt.  
  
"Where were you?" The martial artist asked. Serena blinked some before shaking her head some.  
  
"Um...no where?" She tried. Before Fei could ask anything else, Serena grabbed his arm and proceeded to drag him back inside where Bart was. Serena pretended that nothing serious had happened.  
  
"Hey guys!" She greeted, walking over. The strategy session was about to begin so Serena got there just in time. As the only girl there, she felt out of place but as the strongest she didn't mind. Using some small blocks, Sigurd began to point out some areas of the surrounding desert.  
  
"We'll have to break their forces in two and make it easier on ourselves." He explained before giving Fei his orders. He looked to Serena who had a bored look on her face.  
  
"Serena, you will go with Fei and seperate to come around to the rear of the castle. I doubt you would require the assistance of a Gear considering your abilities." Citan told her. Serena gave the two men a look that said 'fine, whatever'.  
  
"Well that's over and done with. Lets go meet with Margie." She said. Fei nodded a little. He wondered where she had gone off to. Serena knew, but she'd never tell them the truth. Not yet. Unless Copper showed up and gave her away, she'd keep a secret until she got home. She wondered how Gohan was doing without her bugging him...  
  
~~~2000 years in the future...  
  
"SERENA IS WHERE?!" Chichi screamed at her husband and oldest son. Gohan tried calming his mother down.  
  
"She's in the past. 2,000 years in the past on another planet." The teen said. Chichi ploped into a chair. She'd lost Goten and now she'd lost Serena. This was a nightmare. A nightmare she couldn't wake up from. What was wrong with Serena? She'd been such a good girl her whole life. Gohan looked to his two parents. Even Goku seemed depressed. Gohan had never seen his father depressed. Only happy or serious. Never sad. Gohan decided he had to tell his mother the truth. If he kept it a secret, and something happened to her, it would hurt them to badly. They loved Serena. Though she technicly wasn't part of their family, she was close enough.  
  
"Um...mom? I've got...I've got something to tell you..." He said. She looked up to him. He inhaled deeply before speaking.  
  
"Serena...um, what I mean to say is..." He stammered. Chichi glared at him.  
  
"What about Serena?" She asked. Gohan spat it out.  
  
"Serena is Sailor Moon!" He said, earning a stare from his mother. He cringed a little and opened his eyes, which he hadn't realised were closed. Chichi's eyes were wide.  
  
"She's the Moon Princess and she's going to rule the earth in a thousand years. Trunks and Goten are her guards, each of them protect two powerful crystals. Her friends Amy, Raye, Lita, and Mina are her guards, the Inner Scouts. They died the same way Goten and Trunks did. They had their souls ripped from their bodies. Her other friends Amara, Michelle, Trista, and Hotaru left for their planets, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto and Saturn..." He said. He couldn't mention Terra as he no longer remembered her. Even Chibi Chibi had vanished from their memories.  
  
"A few months ago, we were all involved in a big fight with the Dead Moon Circus that was after Goten because he had something they wanted. They wanted his dreams. Serena died during that, Goten and Trunks went to the 30th century to train with their future selves and came back with them...there was a huge fight and we managed to win...there was even a celebration afterwards...then our memories got locked up...only Dad, Vegeta, Trunks, Goten and myself got ours back out of the Z fighters...mom, Serena isn't really our family...she's adopted..." He finally said. Chichi couldn't say anything. The information was just to much for her. She looked sick to her stomach. Gohan spoke once more.  
  
"It's not her fault mom. It's her pre-planned destiny...mom? Mom!" He shouted. Chichi had fainted...  
  
~~~2,000 years in the past...  
  
"Wow..." Serena said as she looked on at the two statues of angels. It was a beautiful sight. Fei looked on in awe with her. Bart didn't show much emotion towards it, he was used to it. Citan was curious as usual and he looked at Margie.  
  
"I've never seen angels quite like that...one looks specificly like a male and the other, a female. They each only have one wing." He said. That reminded Serena of a song she'd heard once when Sammy got that Final Fantasy VII game. 'One Winged Angel'. She'd liked the song enough to learn the words and the translation. She was lucky. It was in Latin, and that was a fluent language spoken on the Moon when she was alive the first time. So it came easily. Truth be told, when she first heard it, she thought someone was actually talking to her. Someone like Beryl. Her hand tightened its grip around the railing, her finger nails digging into the wood like it was clay. She noticed the others leaving and ran to catch up with them.  
  
"Usually you have to go through special rituals to go into Mother Sophia's room but we were visited by an angel today." Margie explained. Serena inwardly smirked at that. Bart looked at his cousin.  
  
"An angel?" He asked. Margie nodded and proceeded to explain what had happened. How an angel walked in, prayed and then left. She said the Sisters believed it was a sign that the long 500 year war was going to end soon. Serena decided then and there to help end it. Who was she to screw with a 'prophacy'? Eventually they came to a long flight of stairs and proceeded to climb up. Serena stretched a little as she went up, bored. Right now she wished she was back home listening to Chichi scream at her over her latest math test. Strange how boredom screwed with your mind. Margie opened the small door at the top. Serena expected something...bigger really. Considering the sacrednesss over it. Oh well. She walked in with the others and looked around. There were cuts in the wall in a design that cast light on the ground. It was the same design that was on the back of Margie's shirt. It looked familiar to Fei, but what floored him was the painting of Mother Sophia on the wall. His jaw dropped making Serena and Citan look up at it.  
  
"That painting...bears a strong resemblence to your friend. And it looks to have been done by someone with your style Fei." Citan said. Serena looked to her long haired friend. He nodded a little. Serena yawned some.  
  
"I don't wanna be rude, but I'd like to go have another nap to be ready for this thing we're gonna do." She explained. Margie turned and nodded to her. Serena left the room. She moved down that stairs, stretching. Suddenly something happened. She stopped dead in her tracks as her stomach hit her feet. She began to run the rest of the way down until she could jump to the first floor. She ran for the doorway to feel something she shouldn't have. 'It can't be!' She thought, screaming in her mind. Fei had heard the tell- tale 'THUMP' of Serena jumping and had run out of the room to go after her, but he was much slower that she was. Serena skidded around a corner and looked around. Had she been mistaken?  
  
"Where are you?" She asked. She felt Fei come after her but she didn't concern herself with that. She kept looking around until she felt it again. Something she hadn't felt in so long. Her face lit up for the first time in a long while. There. Right in front of her. She looked up and smiled happily. She could see Goten, standing there with his back turned to her.  
  
"GOTEN!" She cried and ran for the little boy, reaching out for him. He began to turn around to her but as he did, something happened.  
  
"V..." He whispered and began to crumble away just like last time. Serena stopped and began to scream as loud as her lungs and throat would allow. Fei rounded the corner in time to watch Serena fall to her knees and began to cry like a baby...  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Okay, I know it's short again, but give me a break. I'm working on two stories at once (This one and Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon Z) and I just got over writers block for this one. I'll make the next chapter a continuation, how about that? 


	7. Chapter Six

'_What happened to me…?_' Serena wondered as she regained consciousness. '_My head… it's killing me…_' She shifted around in the bed. '_Am I dead again…?_' A familiar voice came to her ears, and the first thing to come to mind was she was indeed dead.

"King Kai…?" She asked as she sat up, wincing in pain. Someone's hand was placed on her shoulder, indicating she needed to lie down. "King Kai, I can explain… who I am…" Serena muttered, opening her eyes. She was shocked to see Citan there.

"Serena, are you okay?" Citan asked. He smiled when he saw she was responsive. "Thank goodness! I was so worried; you've been out for five days!" He said, heaving a sigh of relief. Serena looked confused.

"I'm… alive?" She asked him. Citan nodded. "I don't remember much of anything after Nisan…" Her memory had gone fuzzy after seeing Goten, or who she thought was Goten. In a rush, the events of the past few days filled her head. The plan to invade Bledavik went underway, she'd gone with Fei to distract some enemy Gears. After they nearly got beat down Serena left Fei to go help Bart, but something had gone wrong. There was a strange enemy, whose Ki was through the roof! Well… through the roof in terms of everyone else on this planet. But Serena had underestimated her strength versus his. His fighting style was very familiar, but Serena had lost before she could place it. Then, just before her memory went black again, he'd come up to her and he'd…

"No!" Serena suddenly yelled, sitting straight up and feeling at her chest. Citan blinked and handed her the heart shaped locket she carried with her and she opened it up. It was gone. She turned an odd shade of green as her heart and head pounded and she began to hyperventilate. "It's… it's not… it isn't… he… th-that man!" She stammered out. Citan ran his hand through her hair, in an effort to calm the teenager down. She was still wounded, and her wounds hadn't healed as quickly as they normally did.

"Serena, please calm yourself. Now, tell me what is wrong. Hm?" Citan said in a very soft, calming tone of voice. It seemed to work, though just slightly. "Is something the matter?"

"Doc…! My crystal, it's gone!" Serena wailed. Luckily there were no other people in the room with her to be disturbed by her loud, annoying cries. "That man took it!" Her mind raced, trying to see if she'd ever seen him before. He was so familiar; it was infuriating that she couldn't recall who he was.

"What man? Can you recall what he looked like?" Citan asked. He had his hunches, only one man could have gotten to her fast enough to take it, but it was best to not jump to assumptions.

"Like Fiore did…" Serena muttered to herself. That had been the only way she had remembered him. He was similar to Fiore. "He was pale, and he had red hair…" She explained. Citan stopped breathing for a few seconds. He was right. It had been him. But what did he want with Serena's crystal?

"At least you are safe and unharmed. Well, relatively unharmed." Citan pointed out. Serena nodded in agreement before standing and stretching. She looked around to see where she was for the first time and blinked. This wasn't the Yggdrasil. "Ah, allow me to explain. You have been arrested." Citan said. Serena's eyes went wide as she stared at him. Arrested!

"What do you mean!" She yelped. She'd never been arrested for anything before. There was only one time she'd ever broken a law, but that had been an emergency! And Pluto had forgiven her for it.

"After the plan to recapture Bledavik went wrong, you and Fei were brought here by Kislev forces to Nortune and placed in their D-Block." Citan explained. Serena then noticed the collar on her neck. "Ah, yes, it would be a good idea to not tinker with that. That is the only thing keeping you in jail. If you leave the vicinity it will explode, killing you." Serena went pale at that. She was trying to not die again, though she often wondered if she had.

"Can't you take it off Doc?" Serena asked with a hopeful look. She knew she could probably survive an explosion that would kill normal people, but she wasn't sure if she could without the Silver Crystal. Her hopes shattered as he shook his head.

"I fear that if I try, I might set it off." Serena groaned and fell back onto the bed in despair. She'd been arrested and was in jail. Things couldn't get any worse. Footsteps came her way.

"Mornin' Doc. Hey, Serena. You okay?" A familiar voice asked. Serena mumbled a 'Hey Fei,' not bothering to look up. "Is something wrong? You look down." He asked his friend. He'd started to classify Serena as a close friend as of recently.

"I was mugged and then thrown in jail. You tell me if something's wrong." She grumbled, pulling a pillow over her face. Fei couldn't help but grin at her attitude. Sure she had valid reason to be upset, but the way she was acting was just funny.

"Be glad you look so frail though," Fei said. The pillow was thrown in his face with some force behind it, knocking the painter back. "Ow! Hey, it was a compliment!" He cried in his defense. Serena sat up with a frown on her face.

"I am NOT frail! I'm stronger than YOU!" She yelled at him. Citan clamped a hand over her mouth.

"Serena, please, do not go about announcing your inhuman strength." He begged. "Your frail appearance has spared you from the 'Baptismal Ceremony' that Fei has had to endure." Slowly he pulled his hand from her face and sighed.

"Baptismal Ceremony?" She asked, blinking. Fei sat next to her.

"Yeah, it's a round of fights with the toughest guys in this place. I made Rank A, sure, but you don't really need to go through with it." Fei said. "They wanted to drag you out there too, but Rico said you probably wouldn't make it past the first man. And besides, it'd be too cruel to put a woman through that." Serena nodded a little.

"Well, at least he's a gentleman." She decided. "Hey, Fei, can we go exploring?" Serena asked. Fei blinked a little before nodding.

"Sure Serena. C'mon." He walked out the door, leaving Citan behind to contemplate how to get both Fei and Serena out of Nortune.

In an effort to do as Citan said about not letting her strength and power be known, Serena was following Fei closely, trying to mimic him in his limited abilities. That meant climbing and jumping, instead of flying. She didn't like it, but she could get used to it again. She didn't want to undergo this 'Baptismal Ceremony' Fei had described. She climbed up to a roof and up another ladder to the highest point of the city, where she was promptly greeted by a rude, old man.

"Hey! You're not allowed up here! Only the operations manager is!" He announced. Serena jumped slightly and looked at him with a frown.

"It's not written down, now is it?" She demanded.

"Well, that's true… I guess you didn't know." The old man stated. Serena nodded a little. "This is the observation tower."

"So what're you observing then?" Serena asked, looking curious.

"You'll see." He said, looking back out. Moments passed before a train zipped by. Serena grinned a little. "I'm the operations manager, but there's no one to manage. It's perfectly automated. I'm only the operations manager on paper." He explained. Serena cocked her head to the side a little.

"Nothing is ever perfect…" She mulled aloud.

"Well, the only weakness is the defection equipment... If it detects a heat source it'll shut the whole thing down to prevent any accidents..." Serena nodded as if she understood. Ami would have loved something this advanced. But Ami was dead now. She would have to accept that fact.

As Serena climbed back down the ladder to the ground below, she wondered what it would be like if she were to head off for the Silver Millennium, to meet the mothers of her best friends. As she wondered what it would be like, she ran headfirst into Fei and someone else that she didn't recognize.

"Hey Fei. Who's your friend?" She asked, looking at the man. He wasn't out of the ordinary… or at least, what SHE considered ordinary. Fei looked at the man – it WAS a man, right? – and sighed.

"His name is Hammer the Supplier. And I told you, I don't want any part of that battling tournament!" Fei said, half to Serena and half to this Hammer character. Blinking, Serena looked at her friend.

"Battling tournament? What's that?" Fei went to speak, but was cut off.

"It's a tournament for Gears! The winner and his mechanics get a free pardon!" Serena could see the energy coming off the man; he was obviously excited and wanted Fei to enter.

"I got contacted by this 'battling committee' and they want me to enter. But I hate Gears." Serena sighed as well. That was a dilemma. She couldn't ask Fei to enter when he hated them. It would be like asking her to sit calmly through a thunderstorm. How could they manage? She tried to think and it wasn't easy. She usually left stuff like this to her friends.

"Hey, Fei? Why don't we go ask Citan?" Serena suggested. "He'll know what to do!" Grabbing him by the arm, Serena hurried off to the medical clinic with Hammer following behind.

"Hey Citan! Where are you?" Serena called as she entered the little room. Fei pulled his arm away and rubbed where she'd gripped him. She might appear delicate, but Serena was by far the most powerful person that Fei had ever met. It seemed she wasn't even aware of her own strength either. His arm was throbbing in pain, but it couldn't have been her strongest grip!

"Ah, welcome back Serena. Welcome back as well, Fei." Citan greeted as he stepped out of the back room. "Have you found a way to escape?"

"Well, sorta… kinda, yeah, but…" Serena began, trying to find the right words to use. "See, Fei found out about this Battling tournament thing, but it's with Gears." She assumed that, since Citan had known Fei longer, he knew what the problem was by now. "And because of that, he won't participate. It's a sure-fire way to escape though, if he were to win. Citan began to ponder his information. It WAS a problem.

"Hm…" Citan began. "Perhaps, there is another way."

"What other way Doc?" Fei asked.

"We can enter Serena." Serena's eyes bulged. "Now, now, before you vocalize your complaint, we can simply state that Fei wishes to enter the tournament, but has suffered a relapse of an old injury. Serena can take his place."

"Uh, Citan? I really hate to break this to you, but uh…" Serena began, scratching behind her ear. "The last piece of machinery I tried to work was an ATM machine, and it blew up." Citan blinked, wondering what an ATM machine was. "If I got into a Gear, I'd probably put a new crater on this planet."

"Serena, we have no other option at our disposal." Citan reminded. "Either you enter the tournament, or we might as well give up." Serena couldn't give up. If she gave up now, before finding Terra, the future was as good as sunk. With a half-hearted sigh, she muttered her approval. This seemed to delight Hammer, who ran out, to register her.

"Maybe you should get some rest before you try piloting a Gear." Fei suggested. Groaning, Serena walked over to a bed and climbed in, falling fast asleep…


	8. Chapter Seven

The night came and went, Serena sleeping comfortably. Well, as comfortably as one could get on a hard prison mattress and with a bulky bomb collar locked to your neck. Couldn't they make it something easier to live with, like a tasteful necklace? Apparently not. Serena was stuck with it. She fell asleep, snoring her usual snores that kept Fei up most of the night. He rolled over to look at her, since she was on the other side of the room. He felt there was something else about her, besides what she'd told them. Ever since Nisan, when she had her emotional break down. And sometimes, Fei couldn't help but get the feeling he'd been around that same Chi she gave off before. A long, long time ago…

"_So anyway, we all had this big party in the end, and I got some GREAT shots of Terra!" Serena squealed happily, pulling the dreaded photo album out of its hiding place. She expected a cringe of fear from Gohan, knowing she would show the photo of when Rini decided to play dress up with him when they had their ages switched. But this time was different. He just looked confused._

"_Who's Terra?" He asked, scratching the back of his head. Serena stared at him._

"_Son Gohan, you know full well who Terra is! Come on, remember, she went to school with us for a while before she went off and died? Like, right after Chibi Chibi showed her self?" She asked. The look of blank confusion remained on his face. He genuinely had no idea as to WHAT she was talking about. This confused her. "Terra. Gohan, she lived in Elysion with Helios and the Shrine Maidens. She exists in Mirai's world as well as one of the Androids."_

"_What are you talking about?" Serena dove her hands into the photo album, looking for the one large group shot taken right at the end of their party, before their memories were all sealed away. She found it, finally, and looked at it. To her horror, she noticed something terribly wrong._

_Terra, and Chibi Terra, had vanished…._

"Terra!" Serena yelled, sitting straight up in bed, bouncing slightly, causing her blonde head to smack into the bed above hers. "OW!" She shouted, cursing under her breath. She looked at the clock, it read '6:00 a.m.' Who invented this ungodly hour anyway? With a groan of annoyance, knowing she'd never get herself back to sleep now, Serena sat up and stretched, listening to her neck pop with a satisfying 'CRACK!'. It felt so much better now. She sighed and put her hand on the bomb collar around her neck. She had the urge to just shred it off, like wet tissue paper, but was still afraid to. Besides, she had other problems to worry about today.

Today, she would be piloting a Gear for the first time.

Serena was not looking forward to this. But, if it got her and her friends out of jail, she would be more than willing to try. She fished around her little bag for some clothes to change in to and groaned in annoyance to find them missing. She got up to steal some of Citan's when she noticed a small clothes line strung from one top bunk to another, her unweighted clothes hung up on them to dry. She walked over and pulled them off, noticing how clean they looked.

"Citan must have washed them last night…" She whispered. In a blur, she changed as fast as she could, in case Fei woke up, and snuck out of the room, pulling her boots on once outside. She looked up at the sky, noticing that blood red moon again. It amazed her that the Moon was always this color. The only time her moon was this shade was when Mars was nearby. Even then, it was only a red-orange. No, this was blood red. Crayola red, even. It scared her somewhat. But she felt this Moon had seen its share of secrets. Did it hold the secret of where Terra was?

"I feel her Ki… I know she's here. I wonder, though, where is she?" Serena said, half in a whisper to herself, half to the moon. "It's moving, it's always moving. It won't sit still in one place for any good period. Terra, where are you?"

* * *

"…and that is how it is done." Citan said, finishing his long, complicated instruction of piloting a Gear. Serena sat on the bed, a notepad and pencil in her hands. She'd started taking notes at first, but after a while, she ended up sitting in stunned silence. Fei blinked and peered over her shoulder. Her handwriting was a little messy, but he could see she'd given up early on. Written under the half-done instructions was a little line, reading 'We're all doomed'. He sighed.

"Look, if we're lucky, you'll get an automatic adjusting one. A prototype maybe. After all, they're starting to mass-produce." Fei said, trying to sound re-assuring. That didn't make Serena feel any better.

"Wouldn't it be easier to just tinker with the bomb collars and let us all die now?" She asked. Fei and Citan laughed, though a little uneasily. Serena had no confidence in her own skills with machinery, she was absolutely certain that she would make it blow up somehow. Citan tried to reassure her, saying he would be waiting with a med kit if something happened, while Fei joked that he'd have the fire extinguisher and, if all else failed, if he could have the stuff in her backpack. He thought it was funny, and he was sure Serena did too, even if she didn't show it.

"There is no need to worry, Serena. I have full confidence in you!" Citan said, smiling. Serena just grumbled and got up to walk out the door.

"At least one of us does…"

It was a little while before they got to the arena area, and Hammer ran on ahead to register Serena. Serena was tugging at her bomb collar, almost hoping to set it off so she wouldn't die in a bigger explosion that she KNEW was going to happen. Citan put his hand on hers to pull it was from the collar and led her inside. It didn't look like much, two caged rooms and a small door at the other end of the hall. Not impressive. Not really. She looked around, fiddling with the collar again, only to have Citan remove her hand again.

"Do not worry, Serena, I have the utmost confidence in your abilities." He assured her. She just nervously smiled and went through the doors with the others. Inside a small lounge, they looked to see what Gear Serena would be getting. It was surprising that they would see Weltall standing there.

"…Normally, I'd say I'm shocked, but right now, I'd be expecting anything…" Serena admitted, putting her hands behind her head.

"Doc, why'd they give her Weltall…?"

"I think they were perhaps expecting you to be the pilot, Fei. Word must not have reached the committee yet that it is our friend, Serena, here." Citan explained. Serena wasn't listening closely, but had heard enough.

'_No… doc… I don't think so… this feels… wholly different from a coincidence… this is…_' An alarm went off, signaling that Serena should climb in and head out. She jumped into the cockpit and tried to remember Citan's instructions on how to operate a Gear. Carefully, she reached her hand out and pressed a few buttons, watching the panels flicker to life. So far so good… no explosions, no horrible fiery deaths… not yet, at least. She watched as characters popped up onto the screen, the language of this planet. Then it began to adjust.

Language Modifiers Set

Pilot Identified

()BUNNY

Piloting Experience

MEDIUM

Adjusting to pilot's normal reflex time…COMPLETE!

Serena's eye twitched.

"What the…?!" She demanded, not understanding this. She didn't have long to try and make sense of it… she had to go out. She found Weltall easy to control. It really WAS adjusted to her reflex time, making it somewhat fast. Due to its size, Weltall wouldn't be SUPER fast, but it was enough. She was going up against another gear and began fighting. She was surprised at how well Weltall responded to her commands and was having fun, really. Serena didn't get why Fei was so against Gears, this was AWESOME!

"It's so easy!" She said to herself, taking out her opponent. But then, she got a sickening feeling in her stomach. This guy -- Leonardo, was it? -- had stopped fighting and stood there. Then Serena realized that this feeling was her reflexes kicking in, slowing time down to her mind. She watched in horror as an explosion ripped through the cockpit, so loud that she couldn't hear it. She felt an intense pain in her face and arms and then, her world went black…

"…nded that she even survived the night…" Serena heard Citan's familiar voice in the small room as she opened her blue eyes and sat up. She felt bandages on her face and arms and coughed a little, dislodging soot from her lungs. Citan heard this and went back into the room, stopping in the doorway as her saw her.

"Ah, you are well." He mentioned, going over to change the bandages again. Serena looked disoriented pretty badly.

"You have an angel watching over you, Serena," Citan began "When the committee sent their men in to rescue you, they swear that a woman was shielding you from the flames in Weltall. But, of course, it was probably an illusion caused by the heat." He said. Serena wasn't paying any attention to his words. Citan frowned and gently pushed her down so she was on her back again, covered her up, and walked out.

"She seems to be traumatized from the events, Fei. Would you be so kind as to sit with her?" He asked. Fei nodded and went into the room as Citan went out to request medicines for her.

"You'll be okay, Serena." Fei said to her, putting a hand to her forehead. She didn't focus her gaze on him, she stared off into space, blinking every so often. She was dazed, it seemed like the explosion had knocked her senseless for the time being. Fei didn't seem to care if she could hear him or not, he spoke to her anyway. Maybe she could listen.

"I'm glad you're okay, Serena. It seems like Weltall is bent on destroying things around me. I guess that's silly," he started, looking at the wall as he spoke. "Gears don't act of their own will, but, I dunno if you've been told, but I was piloting that thing when an attack on my village happened and I wiped it and almost everyone in it out." He said. It felt good to be able to talk about it, it got all of the anxiety he was feeling over it out into the open.

"But then there was the explosion with you in it, and if you'd been anyone else, Serena, you would've died. I don't think anyone could've survived that blast. I dunno, maybe you're not all human?" He wondered, looking down at her. Then he laughed. That was crazy. As if anything could live out in space!

"Hn… what happened…" Came Serena's voice as her sight began to focus. She held her head and sat up, wincing slightly. Fei smiled a little, glad she was coming to.

"Hey there." He greeted. Serena just waved a little bit and continued to hold her head.

"Here, I think I've got something for that." Fei said, digging through his things, before handing her an Omegasol. Serena took it uncertainly and looked at it, then to him. She had an expression on her face that said 'What the heck?' Fei laughed.

"Drink it. It's like those things you have, you said they heal you of anything, well, these do too." He explained. Serena nodded in understanding and drank it down. The pain in her head evaporated, as did the pain from her broken ribs. Despite being in such a horrid explosion, she was remarkably unscathed.

"What happened?" She asked, looking over to Fei. She'd passed out after the initial blast and couldn't remember a thing from it.

"They sent in a body retrieval team after you. Everyone was sure you'd died, that explosion took out almost the entire cockpit. But you were alive, sitting in the chair, just unconscious." Fei said, recalling what he'd been told by Citan. "Something about you must've saved you." He mused. Serena blinked a little. She remembered bits and pieces… just feelings mostly, mostly the intense pain from the blast.

"But you're okay now. They're doing a full inspection on Weltall right now, to see what caused the blast."

"I'm pretty sure it was me who did, Fei." Serena reasoned. Fei just smiled.

"Nah. It'd take more than blind luck, I'm sure!"

* * *

The rest of the night passed without incident and by the next morning, Serena was back on her feet, metaphorically. Actually, she was being carried over Fei's shoulder at Citan's request that she continue in the Battling Tournament. She was yelping and demanding he put her down, though wasn't trying to free herself. She feared she'd end up hurting him if she punched or kicked too much.

"Serena, this is our only hope of freedom, so if you would be so kind as to cooperate." Citan reminded her as gently as he could.

"Do you NOT REMEMBER what HAPPENED?!" She demanded, her right eye twitching as she yelled at him. "Because I do! Put me down Fei!"

"Sure." Fei said, setting her down. Serena crossed her arms in triumph for only a brief moment, before she noticed that they were in the reception room. She just whined and went off to sulk. Citan went up to the desk.

"Please forgive her. Fei still suffers his ailment and she is a little gun-shy. Allow me to register her for the day, please." He requested. The receptionist nodded and handed him the paperwork.

"Due to mechanical trouble, her competitor for yesterday, Leonardo Sniper, has had to drop out... Heinrich Clive has also had mechanical problems and has had pulled out." She informed. Serena looked up at that and walked over.

"This means you, Serena, win by default and can compete in day two's bouts! If you win two matches today, the second day of the games, you can progress on to the third set of bouts. Do you want to enter the bouts for day two?" She asked. Serena blinked and looked at Citan.

"Yes, Serena. You do." He said in a tone you'd use to speak to a small child. Then he grinned. Serena sighed, signed her name to the list, and went to get back into Weltall, who had been repaired after what had happened. She looked above her head, where a small bloodstain remained, to small for it to be considered distracting in combat. She reached her hand up and touched it. The alarm went off, signaling that she was to go back out to fight. With a sigh, she booted Weltall up once more and went out for the next bout of fighting.

* * *

No explosions this time, much to Serena's relief. After docking him for the night, she went back to the clinic with Citan and Fei to get some sleep. She was tired and hungry. More tired than hungry, though, so without even stopping for dinner, she went straight to sleep. During the night, she had a strange dream she couldn't make any sense of, something about being caught… having to run… then--

"You snore." Fei stated as he watched Serena sit up and yawn. Luckily, he'd just finished dressing as he looked over to her. Serena looked at him.

"Do not. I've never heard myself snore." She defended. Oh sure, she knew she did snore, but she didn't want to ADMIT to it.

"You sound like someone cutting down a tree made from a boulder." He said as she sat up and promptly turned around so she could dress.

"Prove it." She insisted.

"I'll get the tape recorder when you're done." He warned. They weren't arguing, both of them could tell, they were just picking on each other, Fei accusing Serena of snoring like a jet engine, Serena calling Fei a liar. Both were a little groggy and were trying to wake up. Fei could feel footsteps coming down the stairs, and his initial thought was Hammer. He hoped Serena was finished.

"Fei." Came the strangely familiar voice. Judging from Serena's very loud shriek, the sound of a pillow hitting a face, and the door to the office slamming shut, she hadn't and Rico had just walked in on her.

"Rico? What are you doing here?" Fei asked, standing and trying to not grin when he saw the force of the pillow hitting him had knocked down the powerful looking man. It seemed like nearly anything in Serena's hands could become a deadly bludgeoning object at will.

"Oof. If you think I've come to fight, you're wrong. I need to talk to you." Rico insisted as Citan moved out of the office, his face red as Serena had run in, half dressed. Doing the polite thing, he'd covered his eyes until she'd gotten behind something and went to leave as soon as she was sufficiently covered.

"Fei, what has happened? Serena is in a state of- oh." Citan said, seeing Rico there, holding a pillow. He derived a conclusion and realized what must have happened. "Well, what is the Battling Champion doing here? Surely there must be a reason that you would grace us with your presence?" He wondered, before moving to get a change of his own clothes for Serena. He couldn't lift her Gi, and her normal clothes weren't clean enough for her to wear. No proper lady would go in unclean clothing, and he wouldn't subject her to something like that.

"Yeah. I came in regards to the incident of the explosion during the first round of the tournament." Rico explained, still puzzled as to how that girl had flung a pillow hard enough to knock him back.

"The explosion incident? Oh! The one that almost killed my friend!" Fei said, wondering why Rico was here now over it.

"Has this something to do with you?" Citan asked, cracking the office door to hand Serena the pants to the outfit. They were hurriedly yanked away; Citan shoved back, and the door shut.

"I'm sorry. That 'accident' was set up by one of my subordinates, Leonardo." Rico explained. "They thought Fei was competing and weren't happy over his Baptismal Ceremony." So, Serena had been an unintended victim.

"And so they made it appear an accident, but it was meant to kill Fei… and nearly killed a woman with no connection to this feud… but why tell us now?" Serena hand reached through the door and Citan handed her the top. It, too, was yanked away; Citan shoved back, and the door closed.

"Why tell us now? Have they come clean?" The doctor asked once more. He was worried Serena might try to retaliate against them. He highly doubted that she would, but he wanted to be safe. The girl seemed to forget how strong she really was, she could do real damage to someone, possibly even kill them if she wasn't careful!

"They're no longer with us!" Rico said at once. That hit Serena. She felt around at once for the Ki of the man she fought in the first round and realized it wasn't there at all. It was gone, as though it'd never existed in the first place. "You're the doctor, don't you know what's been happening? What's going on here in the Imperial capital's D Block?" He demanded of Citan.

"You mean the mysterious murders in the sewers?" Citan asked as he handed Serena the sash. The sash was yanked, Citan shoved, the door closed.

"Yes. A line of skilled Battlers have been murdered, one after the other. All of the victims that have been killed were my subordinates. Kid… I mean, Fei… they were the ones who set that trap to kill you." Rico warned. That news shocked the three.

"So what are you trying to say? That their deaths are somehow connected to me?!" Fei demanded. Citan stepped in.

"Not you. Serena. She was the one caught in the explosion. When Serena comes into this knowledge, in her anger, she sets out for revenge and kills all her would-be killers!" Citan said with a gasp.

"They think I'm the killer?" Serena demanded through the door, trying to figure out how to get the sash tied still. She wasn't coming out until she was finished. Rico blinked and looked at the door.

"Exactly! This morning, they found the fifth! Now it's not unusual for people to die in the sewers, it's providence. You become weak, you die!" Those words had a hint of familiarity to Serena for some reason, like she'd known it her whole life. "But five of the strongest people in a row… it's so unprecedented, that it's why you're the suspect." Rico explained.

"I see…" Citan said. The office door opened at that time, and Serena walked out, dressed in Citan's clothing.

"I wanted to warn you of this. I'm going into the sewers to find the cause of these deaths and prove your innocence." Rico stated as he went to walk out.

"No." Serena told him. "You made a mistake. You MEANT to say 'WE'RE going into the sewers'." She pointed out. Sitting down, she pulled her own shoes on. Citan's clothes might've just barely fit her, but his shoes were too big for her.

"I'm proving my innocence too. No one smears MY name!" She said, fire in her eyes.

"…fine, then. Just remember to watch your own back."

* * *

It wasn't a long trek to the sewers, and it wasn't hard to get in either. Rico gave orders to the guard watching the entrance to let no one else in, unless he was personally with them. And since that would be impossible, no one else was getting in. Serena held her hand to her face, using the sleeve to cover her nose and mouth. It STANK down there! And she got the feeling she was being watched…

"Where the heck are we?" Fei wondered, looking around. Serena stuck close to him, whimpering all the while over how disgusting it was.

"Let's look around for it. We'll talk more if we really find it." Rico said. Serena felt like he really DID doubt her innocence. Maybe he just wanted to get her down here to provoke her to try to kill him in his mind and prove her guilt. Well, HA! She had no guilt to hide, so THERE!

"Shh. Serena. That detecting ability you have, could you please use it? Is there something here?" Citan asked. Serena nodded as she extended her Ki around her to feel around in the dark. Her eyes went wide as she looked behind them, but nothing was there to be seen. Maybe she'd imagined it, she was so distracted with how disgusting this place was, after all…

"Serena?" Fei asked, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Nothing… must've imagined it." She said, shaking her head. The group walked on until they came across a large pool of blood and… dismembered limbs. Part of Serena wasn't surprised at this, the other part… well, it won, and Serena was glad she was in a sewer. Saved her the trouble of flushing it. Citan was on his knees next to her, rubbing her back. He'd only seen her vulnerable looking once before, in Nisan. With Citan helping Serena, Fei went to look at the site.

"This is one of the places." Rico needlessly pointed out.

"Look at this slimy stuff… I don't think a person could've made this, unless they had really bad allergies." Fei said, grinning at his poor joke. Once Serena stopped vomiting, she stood back up and kept her eyes on the ceiling, not wanting to look at the crime scene. Citan led her around it and spotted something.

"Look at this pipe. More of the same slime. Perhaps left by a monster of some sort? I daresay this could go to proving Serena's innocence." Citan said. Once beyond the crime scene, Serena was able to focus on walking.

"You gonna be okay?" Fei asked. Serena nodded, putting the sleeve back up to her mouth and nose to stifle the smell. It wasn't long before they found another crime scene and, much to Serena's relief, no body parts. Just more slime. As the men went to investigate the slime, Serena saw something on the wall.

"Hey, look!" She pointed out. They got up to move over to it. Serena was looking at it, though she had trouble reading the language of this planet. "What's it say?" She asked.

"Looks like… 'Red… Monster'." Citan said after a few moments, the blood was smeared and hard to make out. "These must be his dying words, written in his own blood. A red monster with a taste for blood. Interesting."

"I did NOT need to hear that…" Serena said, coughing a little as she felt like her gut was threatening to retch again. She didn't, though, and walked on. "But I guess it means something's down here that's been killing people. Something that isn't me."

They moved down a ladder and Serena made a questioning noise, looking off down the sewer. Motioning with her hand for her companions to keep quiet, she listened for a moment before charging a quick blast and hurling it down the tunnel. It struck the opposite wall. Citan and Fei, having seen her so that before weren't as shocked as Rico, who had no idea the girl had that kind of power.

"Serena?" Fei asked, a little uncertainly. With a sheepish grin, Serena turned around.

"Thought I heard something down that way. I was hoping to hit it quick." She admitted, bowing in her apology.

"Actually, I believe I heard something as well. A bell." Citan confessed.

"You know, there's a rumor of a ringing bell in here." Rico confirmed as he walked on. He brushed past Serena. She wondered if he still doubted her innocence, or if it was just because the walkway was so narrow. She didn't bother asking, she followed behind the man. She stayed behind Fei and held onto his hand, still disgusted, and slightly afraid. Being here was a new experience for the young woman; she'd always had her Scouts to help her when the going got rough. But now, she had to rely on people she'd only known a few days. She would have to remedy this. She'd have to be brave on her own! …not now, though. It was creepy down here!

It wasn't long before Rico stopped once again and went to investigate something. Citan followed and knelt down as well to see what it was, and it was obvious that Fei wanted to see as well, but Serena was holding firm and wouldn't let him go. Seeing how much he wanted to, though, she relented and let him go, walking over with him and peering over Citan's shoulder. It looked strange. Like one of those Roomba robots being sold in America. They were vacuum cleaners, so she assumed that that's kind of what this thing was.

"It's a rat sweeper. We call 'em 'Cat less Rat Removers'." Rico explained to Citan. It was still whirring, but it wasn't moving.

"It's got something stuck in it." Serena said at once, reaching to pick it up and flipped it over. Rico stood back up to look in it. Indeed, stuck in the gears were a set of keys. Rico couldn't pull them out, so Serena did.

"How'd you…?!" He demanded. Serena didn't answer him; she just looked at the keys funny.

"So… how'd these get stuck in that thing?" She asked, holding them out to show Citan and Fei. Growling, Rico snatched them from her and held them to his face to examine them. He seemed to recognize them.

"These belonged to Vargas. They were his pass keys to the Sewage Treatment Plant, where all the waste ends up." He confirmed. Serena vaguely wondered if Vargas was the owner of the dismembered limbs they'd found earlier. She went green again and rushed off.

"Serena!" Fei shouted, following her.

* * *

Okay, I finished half a chapter. I didn't really wanna do this in two seperate parts, but it's over 7 or 8 pages as it stands now. I have some secrets in this chapter I'm not giving out. Actually, some won't be discovered until the whole thing ends or so. 

SORRY I WAS SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO LATE!!!!!!

...flames will be used for weenie roasts...


	9. Chapter Eight

Chapter 7, Part Two

Serena coughed a little as she expelled what was left in her stomach. Fei helped her stand as Citan came over.

"Will you be okay?" he wondered. Serena nodded and looked to Fei, thanking him for his assistance. She then looked back to Rico, who seemed to be having some doubts about her guilt by this time. She seemed to be strong, maybe strong enough to have done the deed, but she didn't have the stomach for it.

"I wonder" mused the doctor "do all the pipes here gather somewhere?" He turned to look at Rico, who put a large hand to his chin to think for a moment. Serena used that time to stand on her own, putting her sleeve to her nose. Citan's clothes were a little big on her, but she was grateful for that small blessing at the moment. Rico inhaled deeply before he spoke.

"Yes, actually," he said. "The sewage treatment plant."

"Sewage treatment plant?" Citan looked at him curiously as Serena coughed again and gave a weak mutter for them to stop using the word 'sewage'.

"It's where all the waste ends up." Rico had heard her and decided to oblige her request. Serena gave a weak thanks, walking along for a few steps. "It's northeast from here, through the door and next to the furthest waterfall."

Serena went a little green and pressed the sleeve to her nose harder.

* * *

As they walked along, they came across another murder site. Serena was quick to react, burying her face in Fei's shoulder. He stood there, feeling a little awkward before patting her back a couple of times. Citan and Rico were kneeling down, investigating.

"Another one," the doctor announced, as Rico sniffed the air and pinched his nose shut.

"There's that smell again! It's like something is burning!"

Citan stood and noticed a drain covered in slime not too far from their current location. He walked over and carefully put his hand into the muck. "It appears to have been left by the same creature."

Serena lifted her head up from Fei's shoulder and looked over their way. She saw something odd a short way down. It… looked like a frog?

"Hey, what's that?" She pointed to the thing, as Rico seemed to recognize it at once and went over, with a grin.

"Gramps!" he said in an almost friendly tone. The frog looked up at him. "What're you doing here? I thought the entrance was blocked off?"

The frog gave a croak of annoyance. "I've lived here a long time by myself."

"In this spooky place?" Serena demanded, her arm never moving from its spot at her nose. The frog looked at her and nodded.

"Well, I'm a mutant, so the new guy leaves me alone," he explained. "But lately, my new neighbor has been running around, causing a huge mess of things."

Rico looked interested. "Really? Well, we're looking for him right now. Any ideas?"

"You going to go after him?" Gramps wondered. Rico nodded, and Gramps pointed to the door they were headed to anyway.

"He hangs around there," the mutant explained. Serena looked over, and indeed could feel something moving around inside. With a frown, she went and tugged on the door handle, though nothing happened. Rico pushed her aside and tried as well, though he did no better. The Ki was moving, Serena pulled again as Citan came up with the keys to the door and began trying them.

"This is… no, then this one… what?" Citan said, mostly to himself.

"Hurry up," growled Rico, as Citan nodded and kept fumbling around with the keys.

"There's too many."

Serena had enough and ran around to the other side of the hall, facing away from the door. With quick determination, she flipped back, springing off her hands and kicking the metal door in off its hinges, sending it crashing into the back of the room. Rico was stunned at what he saw the girl do. She just crouched down on the door, frowning.

"It got away," she announced, looking back to them. Fei peered in, looking around. There was no trace of whatever it was they were looking for. Walking in, Rico cursed. It should have been there! He turned to look to Serena, when he stepped on something. Pulling his foot up, he saw a bell, slightly warped from the pressure of stepping on it. He held it to the light, listening to it ring. The sound was somewhat warped now, but there was no mistaking it.

"We can use this," he said with a grin. Serena stood on the tips of her toes to see. Rico was pretty tall, easily dwarfing her, as most people did. The soldier of love and justice stood just shy of five feet tall while she could only guess that Rico stood seven feet, easy. Hopping, she grabbed the bell out of his hands and landed, looking carefully at it.

"How? It's a dented bell,"

"Well, let us think about what we know, shall we?" Citan stood behind Serena, smiling. It reminded her of Amy's smile, so she nodded and stood back up. "Obviously it must carry this bell around. That must be the sound reported." He looked to Rico when he said that.

Rico; "Probably what we heard earlier."

Growing pale at the thought of fighting the… thing in such closed quarters, Serena shut her hand around the bell, with enough pressure to silence it without further warping it. Citan walked out of the room and down the walkway for a short while. Fei followed him, while Rico stood aside to let Serena by first. At the finding of the bell, he no longer believed she was the killer. It was his first piece of evidence about a monster like that. Citan knelt down by a drain that was oozing a strange, green slime.

"I see…" he looked up and around as Serena came up behind him. Standing, he gently forced Serena to look away as he pointed. "There is one of the sites. However, this slime seems to have been here for some time. It's drying out."

"So… it won't return to the scene of the crime? I thought that's how it worked, like you see on television!" Serena announced. She could feel the stares of her companion. "…just trust me,"

"Regardless, it doesn't seem to be using this pipe anymore. However, I seem to recall a pipe coated in the same slime with no site nearby," the doctor explained, deliberately trying to avoid using the word 'murder' around Serena, who had returned the oversized sleeve to her nose. He looked up to Fei who was grinning at Serena's behavior.

"So, if we return there and ring the bell, it'll come out?" Rico asked. Citan nodded to confirm it, standing and leading them to the place he remembered. Serena looked around and saw the pipe in question. She stared at it intently.

"So, this place, it will most-- Serena?" Citan looked at the girl, who had a hand up, indicating that they needed to be silent. She was fixated on the pipe and the wall, staring intently. None of the men understood it, but Serena reached up, running a hand along the damp stone. Fei came around to her front and looked at her face. Her eyes… they moved slowly around, the intense shade of blue going from one side to the other.

"Doc? I think… I think she can feel it!" Fei said, backing away from the pipe. With little warning, her hand went up and the bell began to chime. At first, it seemed like nothing happened, as though it didn't work. That feeling only lasted until Serena dropped down into a fighting stance and threw the bell to Citan. The moment the bell hit his hands, something rushed from the pipe screaming the most inhuman shriek any had ever heard, landing in the sewage water.

"There it is!" Fei shouted. Before he could launch his first attack, Serena beat him to it, dropping low and spinning her leg around, trying to knock it off balance. It moved too fast! Serena's eyes went wide as the thing raked its clawed hand down, striking her. Citan's clothes were too large for her, a blessing she now thanked, as she wasn't hit. She jumped back, flipping and kicking her boots off as she did. The heavily weighted shoes crashed through the wall in a way similar to when she was in Aveh. Rico went and grabbed the monster's claw, holding it in place, as Fei attacked, along with Citan. The monster screamed again, forcing the three back, and making Serena cover her ears.

She looked up, glaring at it. Now barefoot, she could move faster! Hopping off of Rico, she slammed the heel of her foot down onto its head, causing the monster to back away, holding where she'd damaged it. The princess followed up with a series of rapid Ki shots, though the thing moved left and right, dodging most of the deadly force. It leapt up, spewing some kind of red cloud into the air over them, landing behind the group. Serena turned around and cried out in pain as the strange mist began to burn her skin. Fei came up and got over her to try and shield her from more of the attack as Citan placed his hand on her, using his Ether ability to heal her.

"I don't like this thing," the girl said through grit teeth, glaring at it. It had no eyes yet it knew right where they were! The ceiling was too low for Serena to attempt to levitate up, she was stuck fighting on the ground. It was its hand that freaked her the most. It was HUGE; it looked far more like an overgrown human hand, the fingers far elongated. The thing lunged at them once more, before Serena could get back up. Citan was thrown aside, striking the wall with a dull 'thud'. Serena reached up to block its attack, when Rico's arm came down between the two of them.

"Back off!" he ordered, roaring in pain as its claws sunk into his arm. He pulled away fine, but he was bleeding terribly. He, too, was thrown aside. It's strength must have been immense to toss the Champ aside like a limp rag doll. Serena stood up in a flash, pushing Fei behind her. She turned to say something, but as she opened her mouth, blood poured from it.

"SERENA!" Fei looked in pure, sickening horror as it's large hand had gone through her. Straight through her gut, to the other side! Blood poured from the wound, coating its hand, as it lifted her up over its head. Serena went limp almost at once from the damage. Citan was getting back up when he saw it and frantically went through his pockets, looking for an Aquasol for the girl. The blood dripped down into the monster's mouth.

"That must be what the bloodstains were from!" Fei realized, looking to Citan who was still searching. Had he not brought one with him?! The monster went to toss Serena into the sewage, when a cracking noise was heard. Rico seemed to go pale, thinking it had been the girl who he had brought to her death. Had he not accused her of being the murderer, she wouldn't have come down here to prove her innocence, she wouldn't be dying. He went to try and retreive her body from the monster, when he saw the thing acting strangely. It threw its hand back, and Serena should have flown from it, but she stayed. It tried again and again, but Serena wouldn't budge. At its next attempt, Rico saw what had made the cracking noise. Serena's hand had reached up and taken hold of its own, the grip so powerful, it had cracked the bones! Citan could see, as he was behind the monster and the girl, that she was smiling. Beyond the blood and the pain, Serena had a demented smile on her face.

"Going to kill me…?" she whispered, then speaking something else in a language none of them had heard before as her head rolled back, her voice loud and laughing. At once, her eyes snapped open and with all her strength, she managed to slam her feet back to the stone ground, forcing the thing's hand to drop with her. Right hand on its hand, left hand on its shoulder, she dug her feet into the ground… and pulled! The monster shrieked and screamed, trying to get free, trying to make her let go of it! The three men could only watch in fascination as Serena ripped its arm from its body, the hand still lodged into her gut. She forced it to the ground and grabbed its head in both her hands.

None of them watched her kill it, but when it was done, she stood on shaky legs and collapsed back. Citan was at her side at once, pouring an Omegasol down her throat. As he did that, Fei and Rico worked to dislodge the hand from her. The wound was gone, there was no scar. Fei was careful as he picked Serena up in his arms, she would have to come back later to collect her weighted boots.

"Why did it… have a bell…?" he asked, looking to Citan, who held the small item in his hands.

Citan; "It had normal, human-like intellect. No… I should say 'had left remaining'."

Rico turned to look at him in shock. "What?!"

Citan bit his lip a little, before shaking his head and pocketing the bell. "How sad…"

* * *

It had been difficult exiting the sewer, but Rico carried Serena up the ladder, despite the injury to his arm. He announced to the guard that Serena was innocent, and the monster responsible had been 'disposed of'. Rico handed the girl to Fei and winced, holding the bleeding injury.

"Wait! Your arm!" Fei shouted. Rico just waved his right hand, indicating that he should just forget it. He walked on to return to his quarters as Citan brought Fei back to the clinic where Serena could rest.

"I wonder if he will forfeit?" asked the doctor. Fei looked at him curiously, before looking back to Serena. Citan noticed his concern and pat his friend on the shoulder. "No worries. I am sure she will wake up soon and feel just fine!"

Fei nodded and laid back on his own bed, staring at the ceiling. "Doc? What do you think caused it? What caused Serena to act like that?"

"I… do not know," he admitted, hesitating slightly. "Most likely, it was a natural response."

"A natural response? How was what she did… 'natural'?"

"A person produces a substance called epinephrine, and when in a dire situation of fear, they will release vast quantities of it. It is best described in we humans as a warm surge. Ah, let's see… you grow pale, your pupils dilate, your mouth goes dry… you loose your sense of hearing, you loose peripheral vision, and your reflexes quicken."

"I don't really understand that," Fei said with a short laugh. Citan smiled, glad the boy had his sense of good humor back.

"Then, think of it as 'Fight or Flight'. Serena was placed in a situation of mortal danger, so her body responded at once, making her even stronger and faster. It was nothing more than pure instinct,"

"Oh."

"Yes," Citan said "pure instinct." '_Please let that be all…_'

* * *

_'Has he awoken...?'_

_'Yes. Twice... no... three times to be exact. May I ask you this...? Why would he be moved to a place like this...? Was it the elders?'_

_'Nay. They're hoping for a more immediate disposal. I don't blame them. They have a deeply etched fear of him. And what of the other?'_

_'The... it is hard to say, majesty.'_

_'Not a day has touched that one, still the same as 'back then'...'_

_'Majesty?'_

_'I would one day like to speak with her.'_

_'Of course.'_

_'As for him...'_

_'It would be too hasty to dispose of him now. I do not think it too late to wait until we know his purpose...'_

_'If that is your judgment, so be it.'_

_'Your will is mine.'_

_'I see it... their judgment has been handed down...'_

_'What is it, then...?'_

_'A purge!'_

* * *

Serena woke the next morning, her head pounding and her gut sore. How many near death experiences was she going to have on this world? Her head was killing her, she didn't really know what had happened either. She remembered fighting the monster, when she turned back to tell Fei she could take care of it. Everything was hazy after that. Noise from outside the door made her head pound harder; she felt like someone had taken a hammer to the back of her head.

"…waited outside."

Serena looked to the door as the knob began to turn, but stopped. She heard Fei outside, as well as Rico.

"Oh well, at least the murders have been stopped."

"And Serena has been proven innocent as well!" came the cheerful voice of the doc, as he finally opened the door, only to be met with a pillow to the face. Serena continued to sit on her bed, scowling now. "Oh! You are awake!"

Serena grimaced. "Shut up! My head is killing me…" with a woozy groan, her hands went back up to her head. Citan went over to examine the girl.

"That is not surprising," he said idly, feeling her throat. "You took heavy damage and lost a tremendous amount of blood."

As Citan continued to examine her carefully, being as gentle as he could with a super-strong teenage girl in pain, Rico shuffled his feet. He would never understand Serena. From what he'd seen, she was amazing in a fight, the most powerful person he had ever met. He was quite glad he'd not made her participate in the Baptismal Ceremony. She would have had his head in no time flat! "Anyway, my allying with you ends here… the next time we meet, Serena, we'll be opponents!"

Rico began to walk out, when Fei spoke up. "What about that wound to your arm? You can't be serious, trying to battle in that state!"

"Heh… can you really afford to think like that?" Rico wondered, closing the door behind him. Fei tried to go after him, but Citan's calming voice came over him.

"Let him go, Fei. There is nothing we can do to stop him." Citan looked up from Serena. "Does his arm wound bother you so much? You realize that-"

"We don't have time to spare, yeah…" Fei sat down on the bed across from his friend, keeping the pillow far from her. Anything she took up was a potential bludgeoning tool.

"What he said is true. Etiqutte dictates a true fight," Serena said, looking over to Fei through the cracks in her fingers. Fei just grinned a little.

"How do you know so much about fighting?" he wondered. "I'm sorry, but you don't seem like the fighting type. The fact you can is just beyond me."

Serena sat there for a long moment, wondering that too. How DID she come about this lifestyle? Should she tell them? Would they even BELIEVE her?

"I didn't fight originally. I used my power to try and help those around me," she began, trying to explain it as easily as she could while leaving out most of the true details. "With the… this special crystal that I lost. You saw me, in Aveh, right Fei? When I transformed?"

She looked over to him as he nodded. Citan had stopped what he'd been doing to listen as well. Serena looked back down at her bed.

"I used to do that, to hide myself from everyone. There were… others like me, too. And we all fought together like that, using our special powers that were unique to each of us. Then, something happened. The man I was in love with turned against me. I… I had to get away from him, I was too scared to stay."

Fei listened, and felt his blood boil when he heard that. He hadn't known Serena for long, but from what she implied…

"So, I went to the home of a friend of mine. He lived out in the forest, a good ways from where I lived. I ran the entire way, and I told him and his mother what happened. They took me in after that. My friend was the one who helped me learn to fight. Then, he introduced me to his friends, who all fight like I do now, and they pushed my ex away from me. Told him to leave me alone. Then, I began living with them, and learned to fight. I caught on really quick, for a girl who had only started the training a short time ago," she explained.

"Then, there was a tournament that they had me go to and I was… injured really badly. Like I was now." She couldn't tell them she'd DIED! "I trained harder and harder, to take my mind off it, and then we confronted the persons responsible for all of it, and with the help of my friends, we defeated them. But, I still stayed with my new family."

Both men looked to her, as though urging her to continue, but she just smiled and shook her head, putting her hands down. "Nope. That's all." If she told any more, she would reveal herself. Fei let his breath go, not realizing he'd been holding it in, as Citan stood up, handing a blanket to the girl. He smiled.

"Well, your health still concerns us, Serena. Let us all rest now. Do not forget, you must win up to the finals first, and the champ is not the only opponent in your way."

Serena nodded and laid down, after snagging the pillow away from Fei and fell fast asleep.

* * *

Three more days passed, and Serena was retraining herself to fight without use of the crystal. At nights, she thought she could still feel it, but decided it was just a phantom thing. The crystal was a part of her, maybe it was like with people who'd lost limbs and could still feel them? She didn't have much time to think about it. Between her self-training and the tournament, she had little time to herself. If Citan wasn't with her, Fei was giving her encouragement, though it was more like he was trying to convince himself of something.

Weltall had docked and Serena was escorted back to the main hall, where Citan and Hammer were waiting. She had a broad grin on her face. Piloting Weltall was getting easier and thanks to that and her fast reflexes, she was in the Finals!

"You did it!" Hammer shouted, beside himself in euphoria. "You won! You're the Champ! …well, close enough, anyway. Victory is in reach!"

Serena just laughed in good humor. Hammer's excitement reminded her of herself. "Overconfidence is the enemy. Vegeta taught me that. I won't say I can win until I do."

"Well, all you have to do is win the finals tomorrow, we'll have our names cleared and be released!" he explained. With her name cleared, Serena could continue looking for Terra and find the man who'd stolen the crystal from her.

"Hammer, do not forget, the Champ is no pushover," Citan reminded. "He must have incredible power to be Battling Champion for three consecutive years. Serena, defeating him tomorrow will be no easy task. You have done well these past few days, but you should be careful."

Hammer looked to Citan as though he were crazy. "If you give her that attitude, she'll lose even if she could've won! Come on, show some spirit!"

Serena laughed again, causing both men to look at her. "You're right!" she said, bouncing. "I'll never win with these pre-battle blues! Thanks, Hammer!" With that, she turned to leave, but Hammer stopped her.

"I'd like to say 'no problem', but tomorrow is important! Don't you think you should customize out your gear?" he wondered. Serena blinked and looked to Citan. She had never told them about Weltall knowing her, but she still thought of it as belonging to Fei.

"Will Fei mind…?"

"I am sure he will not. Go with Hammer, and we will meet you there," the doctor assured. Serena was still leery of her technical prowess, or lack thereof, but Hammer pulled her away before she could protest.

* * *

Night fell and Serena was leaning back, covered in dirt and oil. With her immense strength and ability to fly, she'd been charged with placing the more difficult parts She was now resting with a bottle of water. Apparently, this world didn't have the concept of 'Soda'. Fei was going through the circuitry with Citan and looked over to Hammer.

"This is all?" he asked. Hammer nodded, depositing another load for them to sort.

"Yep. This is the best we can get around here."

Serena looked over with a look of disdain etching her face. "It's all crap. How am I supposed to win using scrap metal rejects?"

Citan nodded in agreement. "Compared to the Champ's Gear, the quality does not match up."

"Like I said, it's all crap."

"Nothing we can do," Hammer said with a shrug. Master Rico's Gear is a special make provided by the Committee. Maintenance to parts, he gets the best of everything! As long as money is involved, the Champ will go all out. That's one of the reason's he's so powerful…"

Serena rolled off her back into a sitting position, putting the bottle down. "Armed robbery," she decided, causing all three men to stare at her. "If I were to go to jail, I'd want it to be for something BIG. Armed robbery or something like that. Not getting stolen from!" She pouted after that, looking up at Weltall. Fei looked back to Citan once Serena's rant was finished for now.

"Can't we get better parts than this? Th-"

Laughing cut him off. Serena was on her feet at once, looking up at the steel support beams for the roof.

"As usual, you haven't learned anything, have you?" Wiseman asked. Serena growled and stood between Fei and this man.

"I remember you! You're the guy who ran out of the tournament!" she shouted. "I still have to kick your ass!"

His grinning mask did nothing to settle Serena's rage at him. "No matter how high quality your Gear may be, you can't defeat him."

Serena went to yell again when she suddenly turned to look behind her. She'd caught his movement as he appeared where she stared. It startled Hammer that he'd moved so damn fast, and that Serena had been able to follow him and keep him in her line of sight.

"His energy level is rising," Serena warned. "Fei get behind me!" A fireball struck her in the chest, sending her back from the sheer force. Citan caught her, thankful she was still in his spare clothing so he could hold her without fear of being crushed.

"Serena! You!" Fei shouted looking to Wiseman. "You want a fight?! Are you serious?!"

"Of course," Wiseman calmly replied. "Put up a good fight for me, Fei. If you don't, your life is mine!" Without giving the boy any time to prepare, he was at him, striking him in the face. Fei fell back but managed to jump to his feet quickly, kicking at Wiseman, hitting his throat, though it did little good. They exchanged blows for several long minutes, but once Fei realized what style his opponent was using, he was caught off guard. One solid hit to the face sent him back.

"That's… my technique!" Fei shouted as he got back up. Wiseman looked to Serena.

"Fighting brute strength with brute strength is a sign of a great fool," he said as Citan helped her stand and then held her back from attacking him. She was mad now. "It's obvious that a lighter body such as yours will always be at a disadvantage in a head-on attack. I just gave you a good example. That minor difference between Fei and I had this outcome. Now, someone else with a mass several times you, like Rico, the outcome becomes highly apparent. This applies to Gears as well... Even if you were to get parts comparable to Rico's, there is still the difference in mass. To make up for this, one must commit to a single final strike that thrusts at the opponent's fissure."

"Just what the hell do you know? My reflexes are better than anyone's here!" Serena shouted, not knowing where her anger was coming from, but she knew it was there. It seemed to her to be a matter of pride and respect for everyone who'd taught her. This guy was outright calling them trash!

"I have given you your hint. It's up to you to figure it out through experience." Wiseman turned and went to walk out, when Fei caught his attention.

"Wait! Why is it that you have the same fighting style as I do?!" he demanded. "How do you know my name! Tell me!"

"…fine," the mysterious man said, not looking back to him. "It was three years ago. The one who took you, in your mutilated sate, to that mountain village was myself."

"You're the one who brought me to Lahan?" Fei said in shock. Wiseman nodded.

"Yes. It was a request of your… father." Serena perked her head up, hearing a slight hesitation.

"You know my father?!" Fei demanded again, wanting the information more than anything.

"Khan and I were fellow students."

"Khan? Is that my father's name?" Fei looked at Wiseman, who turned to fully face him as though stunned. Serena could see it in his movements.

"Why do you ask for your father's name? Don't tell me you've…?" he began, before sighing. "I see. I shouldn't be surprised. You were horribly injured. …fine."

Fei leaned in closer, wanting to hear all he could. Once she decided he wasn't going to fight, Serena relaxed her stance, looking to Citan.

"Khan Wong. That is your father's name. Since our youth, Khan and I studied the martial arts together," he said as briefly as he could. He was hiding something, he spoke the way Serena did referring to her own life, but she didn't want to interrupt him. Fei wanted to hear this. No. Fei NEEDED to hear this.

"Father and you?" Fei asked, seeking clarification.

"Yes. Eventually, your father became an officer of another country. It was there he met a young woman of about twenty years old. Her name was Karen, an she was like a flower in full bloom."

That confused Fei. "Flower…?"

"It means that she had extraordinary beauty," Citan supplied. Wiseman nodded.

"Yes. She was your mother. She and Khan married and I left on a journey to strengthen myself."

"Wait, so where is my mother now?" Fei wondered, smiling a little. So much information! This was wonderful!

"You do not remember that either?" Wiseman wondered. He sighed once more. "I see. …according to Khan, when you were a child, she passed away."

Serena couldn't help herself. She saw the sadness in Fei at once, and went to hug him.

"Fei… I'm sorry," she said, feeling terrible for him.

"Time passed and during my journey, I received a letter from Khan. The letter said that his son… was taken away. Khan once said you had special powers and the man who wanted that power took you. His name was Grahf."

Fei was so startled, it forced Serena to let him go. "Grahf?! He took me away?!"

Serena blinked and looked to Citan, who shook his head as a way to tell her he would explain later.

"You've met him?" Wiseman asked.

Fei nodded "three times," he explained.

"It's amazing that you are still in one piece."

"It seemed to Grahf that I wasn't powerful enough to achieve his ultimate goal. Hey, tell me more about this story," the fighter urged. Wiseman was silent for several moments before nodding.

" Khan wished to go find his son, and if possible, he wanted my help... I agreed to Khan's request and began searching for you... and that man. Then came that one fateful night three years ago. There was a violent storm. The storm felt as if it was thrown at us through sheer rage," he recalled, looking up to the ceiling. Serena was silent, listening intently.

"That night, Khan notified me that he had located his son. So I headed for that location, as if I was drawn to it. You and Khan were wounded badly. I have no idea what happened between you two and Grahf. By then, Grahf had already gone. I don't know why, but probably he was driven away by Khan. Khan decided to pursue Grahf and left me to care for his son. I provided you with the necessary first aid and left you in the custody of those village people. Then I followed after Khan. You probably lost your memory when you were injured then."

Fei looked down, then back to Wiseman, trying will all his being to recall these events. "Why? …why did my father pursue Grahf?"

Wiseman just shook his head. "I don't know. All he said was that it wasn't only for your sake, but also for the sake of the world. That that man had to be disposed of. He… said that if something were to happen to him, I would have to take care of the rest. That was the last I heard from him."

Fei just slumped and Serena went back over to him. "He said my father was dead."

"If Grahf has been appearing in your presence…" Wiseman began, once more choosing his words carefully "then that is a possibility. How unfortunate. Do you remember anything about your fighting techniques?" Wiseman asked. Fei just looked up, confused.

"N-nothing at all," Fei explained.

Wiseman nodded. "Your fighting skills were probably taught to you by Khan. He and I both studied under the same master. Well, then, I must be off." With that he turned and began to walk off. Serena felt her anger at him slowly vanish.

"Hold it! Where're you going?" she demanded, though she didn't move from behind Fei.

"I will go and find Grahf. I need to pinpoint what his intentions are. …for Khan's sake."

Serena frowned, putting her hand on Fei's shoulder. Citan just watched, a look of pure worry and nervousness on his face that she would squeeze and break it. "Okay, one more thing. What country was his father an officer for?"

"Do you plan to journey there?"

"I… I came here looking for a friend of mine. Her life is in terrible danger. I don't know where my leads will take me to, so I might just end up going there," she said. That caught Citan and Fei by surprise and they looked at her.

Wiseman just laughed. "Very well. The floating land which tries to hide behind a wall, protected, as if to conceal their failure. That is Shevat. That is Khan's country. Farewell."

With that, he just vanished. Serena sighed and fell back to the ground, splayed out. She groaned in frustration, not caring about the looks.

"…what a mysterious person," Citan finally said, not bringing up what Serena had just said. "Is this the second time you have met him, Serena?"

"Yeah. He ran out of the Aveh tournament. He moves like my friends. I don't get him! What did he mean!?" she shouted, putting her hands over her face. "I kind of get the general idea, though. Maybe I can do something tomorrow in the finals."

"What was that all about? He disappeared like the w-w-wind!" Hammer demanded. "I've only known you since you got here! What is this Aveh tournament? What's going on?" He looked from Fei to Citan to Fei then to Serena.

"At least it's comforting to know that this crap we're calling Gear parts won't make a difference," Serena said in relief, ignoring Hammer's question.

"Never underestimate the situation, Serena," Citan mentored. "You could still loose badly if you think you can just win by grasping a concept."

"Yeah, yeah, I know…" she said, sitting back up.

"Anyway, let us return to our quarters and rest. Serena, our fates lie in the outcome of tomorrow's competition. You should preserve your tremendous strength."

* * *

Serena sat in Weltall, staring at Rico's Gear. She was damaged and so was he. Unlike the other fights she'd gone through, this wasn't a best two out of three match, this was five rounds. Whoever won five first would be the winner and each had won four. She had extensive damage to Weltall and frowned. She tightened her grip on the controls before her which wouldn't break no matter how hard she gripped. Whoever had built Weltall had designed it for serious wear and tear in the cockpit.

"I can't give up," Serena told herself, tightening her grip again. "If I loose… I might never get another chance. I have to get out of here to save Terra. Not just Terra, everyone is depending on me to go back and beat this new enemy. And Fei and the others…" she whispered, watching Stier rush her, hoping for a quick victory. Rico was startled when Weltall dropped and grabbed the arm that went over its head, getting thrown back. Serena was jostled from the movement, but kept her stare up.

"An angel arrived in Nisan and brought the promise to the end of a five-hundred year war. I can't back out of that, either… I won't loose here!" Stier came at her once more and she met its punch, the speed startling the Champ. Weltall dropped again, swiping at its legs, knocking it back. Stier landed on the ground and with some difficulty was back up. Weltall met its next punch, jostling the princess slightly who responded by punching at the head.

"The secret to winning this battle isn't brute strength. It's finding a hole… and punching through it!" she announced, kicking hard. The groaning of mechanical parts filled the cockpit as the attack strained. Serena watched the screen carefully and watched as a message popped up, announcing that the attack would be automatically disengaged before serious damage could occur. Weltall fell back, landing in a crouching position.

"Wha…? N-no!" Serena shouted, trying to move the controls. The right arm began to lift slowly. Too much damage! Weltall was overheated! She could only watch as Stier came up on her, ready to land the final blow. Weltall was kicked aside and rolled across the landscape, landing on its back, hand outstretched. It wasn't cooling off fast enough! Her mind raced and in an instant, she knew what to do…

…Stier wasn't prepared for the sudden blast of energy and was thrown back as Weltall struggled to its feet. Serena had won.

* * *

Citan was offering Serena a bottle of water as he doctored the bruise on her cheek. Fei was wondering what she'd done as Hammer was cheering that she'd managed to beat the Champ.

"I don't FEEL like I won," the princess admitted, taking a long drink. "It was just luck."

"Luck had nothing to do with it!" a new voice shouted. Serena looked up curiously to see Rico headed her way, trailed by two henchmen. One of them had yelled at her. "Your machine was rigged! I'm gonna tell the committee!"

"Yeah, she definitely had her Gear equipped with illegal parts or something! There's no way it coulda used that attack with any STANDARD parts!" the other one shouted. Serena frowned. Before she could start yelling, Rico seemed to realize and grabbed one of them by the shirt and threw them back.

"Shut up! Don't embarrass me further. How could such special parts exist in the Imperial Capital anyway?!" he demanded. "Especially since it's impossible to leave with the collars on!"

Serena decided to not mention it hadn't been Weltall who had won the fight, but herself. The lackeys were trying to convince Rico of their accusations, but he wouldn't hear them.

"But Rico-"

"I said shut up!" Rico shouted, growling. "Keep quiet!"

"That's right," Hammer insisted. "It's impossible. She won on her own strength! Stop trying to trump up on false accusations!"

Serena shook her head. "Enough, Hammer. I won because of luck and quick thinking. Besides, the wound on your arm from saving me hasn't totally healed, has it? If it weren't for that, I'd have lost in no time."

"A loss is a loss," Rico insisted. "This is no excuse. You are the Battling Champion." He began to walk off. When his lackeys went after him, he looked back. "I am no longer the Champ!" he growled, frustrated that they wouldn't understand that. "You'll just be in my way! Don't follow me!"

Fei watched as Rico ran off, while Hammer couldn't contain his joy at being freed.

"Serena, Weltall couldn't have used that ability. What on earth did you do?" he asked, catching Citan's attention. The girl just turned red from the attention and giggled nervously, scratching her nose.

"Well…" she began when Rue came up to her. Blinking, she looked to the woman who motioned for a technician to remove the bomb collars from them.

"You're no longer confined to D-block," Rue explained, watching as Serena rubbed the red skin where the bomb had been locked to her neck. "I'm here to show you the way to your new residence."

Serena didn't see the point of it, as she planned to get out of this place as soon as possible, but Citan seemed to see the look on her face and made a subtle motion with his hand that she should go along with it. When Rue walked off, Serena was right behind her. Fei looked to Citan.

"Doc, how'd she…?" Fei asked, needing to know how she'd won the match. Weltall had been totally shut down.

"Our young friend seems to be extremely resourceful," the doctor explained. "I would think she finished the battle on her own. You said she disabled an enemy gear by landing on it? And when Bart's hideout was attacked, she stopped them then."

"So, you're saying she che-" he began when he was elbowed by Citan.

"We are freed and can search for our friends now. Do not ruin our only chance, please."

The walk was uneventful for the most part. Serena was led into a large room, bigger than the clinic she'd been confined to earlier. She was glad she'd capsuled her weighted clothing so there'd be no problem in carrying them around. Besides, she'd grown fond of the design of Citan's clothes. She'd have to ask him about getting her own set. Rue opened the door for Serena and she walked in.

"Wow… this belongs to the champ?" she asked, looking around at everything. It was a dump, but it was big. And, sadly, still better than the little clinic she'd been at.

"Is it not to your liking?" Rue wondered. Serena jumped and shook her head.

"N-no, nothing like that! It's… nice, just… what about Rico?" she asked, concerned.

Rue frowned. "Rico? He's the 'ex-champ'. YOU are 'the Champion'," she emphasized.

"O…kay? That… doesn't answer my question," the princess patiently said. "What happened to him?"

"After the finals league, during the group league bout, his Gear went out of control. It crashed into the Kaiser's box seat, and was damaged. Nothing has been heard from the former Champion, Ricardo, and no one has seen him since."

Serena blinked and looked off towards the distance. Citan had to keep himself from asking if she could 'sense' Rico.

"There are no Battling competitions for a while, so you can rest up a bit," Rue explained, not taking notice of Serena's strange behavior. "We removed the collars, so why not take a walk around A Block?"

"It's a civilian area?" Fei asked. Rue nodded.

"The southeast part of the Imperial capital... It is called A Block or the ordinary civilian area... Well then, we shall take our leave... Anyway... This room is yours to use. Next door is the bedroom. Oh... and, Serena. Now you will be given the title of Champion as well as special S Rank privileges," she said, turning away. "Well congratulations on winning the Battling Championship... We were able to take some very good data…"

Serena frowned, certain she heard the woman laugh at that. "One more thing, good news. Kaiser Sigmund would like to meet you, Champion Serena. Please stop by the Central Administrative District. Well... good bye."

With that, she was gone and Serena turned to her friends.

"So, you are both now free in name and reality, correct?" he mused with a grin.

"What're you gonna do now? Leave Nortune?" Hammer asked.

"Ah, but we are yet to finish. There is one more thing left to do," the doctor corrected, putting a hand on Serena's shoulder. Fei nodded.

"We have to get Weltall… right?"

"They probably moved him to another dock," Serena said, turning her attention away for a moment, before looking back to her friends. "Hey! Hammer, can you find out for us?" she asked at once, smiling. Hammer nodded, excited to still be of use.

"Got it! I'll find out where it is! I'll bet my reputation on it!" he said.

"Okay. Hammer will go to find where Weltall is," Citan announced. "Fei and I will find what we can, and Serena-"

"You guys go get supplies," she ordered, pointing to them. "I've been training at night. I have a little of my Ki built up. As long as I don't fight, I'll be good. I'm gonna go find what happened to Rico. I can feel him in the capital still… and while I'm there, I'll find out how the guards move, so we can get Weltall without a problem."

Citan nodded. "Good. We have our plan of action."


End file.
